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Researchers suggest that artificial intelligence (AI) may significantly contribute to the early identification of individuals at risk of developing heart failure by detecting subtle abnormalities that are typically difficult to catch.
Heart and circulatory diseases are leading causes of death globally, with one in three global mortalities annually. In light of potential “real-world benefits,” Scottish scientists embarked on a study using AI to identify at-risk individuals.
Data kindly provided by patients enrolled in the Scottish Health Research Register and Biobank (SHARE) allowed a research team from the University of Dundee’s School of Medicine to analyze a cohort of 578 subjects to determine how AI might assist.
Published in the journal ESC Heart Failure, their study applied AI to scrutinize population-based electronic health records and echocardiography heart scans with the aim of pinpointing patients with heart failure.
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The AI’s deep learning algorithms delved into the echocardiogram imagery to single out irregularities possibly elevating the risk for patients.
Professor Chim Lang commented on the significance of the research: “We’ve made strides in using deep learning to automatically interpret echocardiographic images.
“Such an approach can vastly enhance the efficiency in identifying heart failure cases within electronic health record datasets.
“AI-enhanced echocardiography offered us more data points on heart structure and function that are not typically included in standard heart scan reports.
“The AI-powered scans not only provided more comprehensive information but also had the potential to be processed at a scale beyond conventional images.
“This opens up possibilities for improving patient triage for clinical trials, better heart failure detection across hospitals, and speeding up the selection process for research purposes,” Lang adds.
Heart failure, often a subtler yet frequently unrecognized condition, occurs when the heart can’t adequately circulate blood. While lifestyle modifications, surgeries, and medicines can manage symptoms to some extent, it is usually a severe, gradually worsening situation over time.
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Understanding ‘Real-world Benefits’
According to the British Heart Foundation’s January report, heart and circulatory diseases declared an estimated 20.5 million lives in 2021, equating to one death every 1.5 seconds.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, BHF’s associate medical director, expressed the current dire state of heart care within the NHS as the “worst… in living memory”, with a concerning rise in premature deaths due to heart and circulatory diseases.
Prof Lang expressed optimism on AI’s capability in providing tangible patient improvements. The use of AI to analyze extensive patient records has revealed structural and functional heart irregularities that would have gone unnoticed through normal echocardiographic image analysis.
“As a test case, the large-scale application of deep learning to a biobank resource is exhilarating. It’s my hope it sets a precedent for other researchers to leverage such technologies for the good of patients across the globe,” says Lang.
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FAQ
How can AI help in detecting heart failure risk early on?
AI can analyze large datasets of electronic health records and echocardiographic heart scans to identify subtle structural and functional anomalies indicative of heart failure, which might not be detected with traditional methods.
What are the potential benefits of using AI in heart failure detection?
AI enhances the detailed analysis and rapid processing of patient scans, which could improve the efficiency and speed of clinical trial patient selection, surveillance, and early diagnosis within hospital systems.
Does AI replace healthcare professionals in diagnosing heart failure?
No, AI is a tool to aid healthcare professionals by providing more comprehensive data for analysis. It does not replace the expertise and decision-making of medical practitioners.
What was the role of the Scottish Health Research Register and Biobank (SHARE) in this study?
SHARE provided the data of volunteers that allowed the researchers to analyze a cohort of 578 people and apply AI technology to identify those at risk of heart failure.
Is heart failure a treatable condition?
While heart failure is a serious and long-term condition that generally progresses over time, symptoms can be managed, and the condition can be controlled through lifestyle changes, medication, and in some cases, surgery.
