More patients presenting in ED with chest pain could be safely discharged home with the adoption of a faster testing protocol for troponin T, a world-first Australian trial has found.

Researchers from Finders University, SA, say the new protocol has the potential to reduce unnecessary admissions of patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome by 12% and cut average ED wait times by an hour without compromising patient safety.

Under current protocols, patients presenting with suspected acute coronary syndrome have troponin T concentration tested upon presentation and then re-tested three hours later for comparison.

In the trial, the subsequent test was performed one hour after the initial test.