Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help doctors find patients at high risk for severe heart conditions. Researchers at the University of Leeds created an AI system called Optimise. This system analyzed health records from over two million people. They found many patients had undiagnosed conditions or lacked the right medications.
Dr. Ramesh Nadarajah from the university noted that preventing conditions from worsening is usually cheaper than treating them later. Among the two million records, over 400,000 people were flagged as high risk for heart failure, stroke, and diabetes. This group made up 74% of those who died from heart-related issues. In a pilot test with 82 high-risk patients, one in five had undiagnosed chronic kidney disease. More than half with high blood pressure received new medications to better manage their risk.
This approach could allow for earlier treatment, reducing pressure on the National Health Service (NHS). Dr. Nadarajah pointed out that the AI uses existing data to provide new insights. This helps healthcare professionals deliver timely care. Researchers plan to conduct a larger clinical trial, as shared at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in London. Dr. Nadarajah also hopes this research will aid patients with heart and circulatory diseases and ease NHS pressures.
Prof. Bryan Williams from the British Heart Foundation, which funded the study, emphasized the importance of early diagnosis. “This study uses advanced AI to identify various conditions that contribute to heart and circulatory diseases, which are responsible for a quarter of all deaths in the UK.”
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