BBCTechnology which identifies people at risk of heart attack over the next decade has been hailed as “groundbreaking” by scientists.
Artificial intelligence (AI) models detect inflammation in the heart that goes undetected by CT scans, which combine X-rays and computer technology.
A pilot project, supported by NHS England, is being run in five hospital groups: Oxford, Milton Keynes, Leicester, Liverpool and Wolverhampton.
A decision on its use within the NHS is expected to be taken within months.
Callisto Diagnostics, a company spun out of the University of Oxford where it was developed, says it is already working on applying the technology to prevent stroke and diabetes.
“This technology is innovative and groundbreaking because for the first time it can detect biological processes invisible to the human eye that precede the onset of a stenosis or blockage. [within the heart]”Professor Keith Channon of Oxford University said:
As part of the pilot program, patients suffering from chest pain who are recommended to undergo routine CT scans will have their scan results analyzed by Caristo Diagnostics’ CaRi-Heart AI platform.
The algorithms for detecting coronary inflammation and plaque will be evaluated by trained operators to verify their accuracy.
Research has shown that increased inflammation is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and fatal heart attacks.
According to government figures, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) estimates that around 7.6 million people in the UK have heart disease, costing the NHS in England £7.4 billion a year.
According to the BHF, around 350,000 patients are referred for a cardiac CT scan each year in the UK.
The Orphan Study (Oxford Risk Factors and Non-Invasive Imaging) was conducted on 40,000 patients. LancetThe study found that 80% of people were being referred back to primary care without a clear prevention or treatment plan.
Focusing on that cohort, the researchers said they found that if patients had inflammation in their coronary arteries, they had a 20- to 30-fold increased risk of dying from a heart attack over the next 10 years.
The BHF-funded study found that using AI technology, 45% of patients were prescribed medication or recommended lifestyle changes to prevent the risk of future heart attacks.
“The Call to Wake Up”
Ian Pickford, 58, from Barwell, Leicestershire, was advised to have a CT scan in November 2023 after experiencing persistent chest pains.
He took part in the Orphan Study at Leicester University Hospitals NHS Trust.
A double glazing salesman was diagnosed with a high risk of heart attack using AI analysis and was prescribed a statin and told to quit smoking and exercise more.
“This is a big wake-up call,” Pickford said.
“And when you see it on paper, you realize how serious it is. You look at it every day and you think, ‘We’ve got to do something about this.'”
Professor Charalambos Antoniades, leader of the Orphan study, said that until now the tools available were primitive because the risk calculators could only assess common risk factors such as whether a patient had diabetes, smoked or was obese.
He said, “Now, [AI] This technology allows us to know exactly which patients have disease activity in their arteries before the disease progresses.
“This means we can stop the progression of the disease early and treat these patients to prevent the disease from progressing and prevent them from having a heart attack.”
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is currently assessing the technology to determine whether it should be introduced across the NHS.
It is also under review in the United States and has been approved for use in Europe and Australia.
