'Game changer' AI spots hidden heart attack risk
- tech360.tv
- Aug 6, 2024
- 2 min read
Traditional scans cannot detect heart attack risk, but AI technologies can. NHS England is supporting a pilot project in five hospital trusts. Caristo Diagnostics intends to adapt technology for stroke and diabetes prevention.
An innovative artificial intelligence (AI) device can detect inflammation in the heart that traditional CT scans, which use X-rays and computer technology, may miss.
A ground-breaking pilot effort supported by NHS England is presently ongoing at five hospital trusts in Oxford, Milton Keynes, Leicester, Liverpool, and Wolverhampton. A decision on its implementation in the NHS is expected in the coming months.
Caristo Diagnostics, the originator of this innovation and an Oxford University spinout business, is already working to adapt the technique to detect and prevent strokes and diabetes. Professor Keith Channon from the University of Oxford expressed, "This technology is transformative and game changing because for the first time we can detect the biological processes that are invisible to the human eye, which precede the development of narrowings and blockages [within the heart]."
During the pilot phase, patients with chest pain who undergo a routine CT scan have their results analysed using Caristo Diagnostics' CaRi-Heart AI platform. An algorithm within the system identifies coronary inflammation and plaque, which is then reviewed by trained operators to confirm its accuracy.
Research indicates that heightened inflammation is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and fatal heart attacks. The British Heart Foundation (BHF) estimates that around 7.6 million individuals in the UK are living with heart disease, costing the NHS in England £7.4 billion annually, according to government data.
AI technology can detect heart attack risk invisible to traditional scans
Pilot project supported by NHS England running in five hospital trusts
Developer, Caristo Diagnostics, aims to adapt technology for stroke and diabetes prevention
Source: BBC
