Usefulness of Chest Wall Tenderness as Bedside Test to Exclude Acute Coronary Syndrome in Different Demographic Groups

When a patient is presenting with acute chest pain at the ER of the University Hospital of Zurich, the study physician in charge, who is acting simultaneously as one of four attending clinical physicians, is performing the physical examination according to routine clinical practice. The physical examination includes the testing of chest wall tenderness: Palpation of chest wall tenderness in lying 30° elevation of chest position. Flat index with standardized pressure where spontaneous maximum pain is reported (reproducible vs. not reproducible pain vs. no pain). Negative control (right side of chest mid-clavicle intercostal 6/7), reproducible vs. not reproducible pain vs. no pain. The same physician, who is blinded for the final diagnosis at the time of the physical examination, is also recording the patient history including the study interview using the standardized study questionnaire.

Inclusion criteria

All patients over the age of 18 years presenting with the leading symptom of first time or recurrent acute chest pain in the emergency room of the Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Zurich.

Exclusion criteria

• Missing informed consent.
• Cardiopulmonary unstable patients.
• No self reported chest pain.
• Recent thoracic surgery within1 year, inflammatory joint disease, fibromyalgia, cardiogenic shock.