Researchers have found a new way using Artificial Intelligence (AI) that could help in detecting three different heart conditions not in minutes, but in seconds.
The study was conducted jointly by Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust using the AI stethoscope that is designed by a US firm, Eko Health.
The first stethoscope was invented back in 1816, allowing doctors to listen to the internal sounds of a patient’s body.
The British research team conducted a study that found three major heart conditions using a modern version of the stethoscope: Heart failure, heart valve disease and abnormal heart rhythms almost instantly.
This new tool could prove to be a “real game-changer” resulting in early patient treatment, the researchers say, and they plan to introduce the device across UK, following a study involving 205 GP surgeries in west and north-west London.
The findings were presented at the annual congress of the European Society of Cardiology in Madrid, world’s largest heart conference.
The researchers plan to introduce the new stethoscopes to GP practicing in south London, Sussex and Wales.
The device replaces the traditional chest piece with a device around the size of a playing card. It has a microphone to analyse subtle differences in heartbeat and blood flow that the human era was unable to detect.
It takes an ECG (electrocardiogram), recording electrical signals from the heart, and sends the information to the cloud for further analyses by AI trained on data from tens of thousands of patients.
The study saw more than 12,000 patients from 96 surgeries that were examined with newly manufactured AI stethoscopes.
The results were then matched to patients from 109 GP surgeries that were examined without using this new technology.
The results show, those with heart failure were 2.33 times more likely to have detected it within 12 months when examined with the AI stethoscope.
Abnormal heartbeat patterns, which have no symptoms but can increase stroke risk, were found 3.5 times more detectable with the AI stethoscopes, while heart valve diseases were 1.9 times more detectable.
It is a remarkable effort by the researchers that have made strides in upgrading the stethoscope, which was invented 200 years ago, for the 21st century.
This innovation holds special significance in the early diagnosis of these three heart conditions, which are often diagnosed at an advanced stage when patients present to hospital emergencies.
AI stethoscope can help with early diagnoses, which in turn help people access the treatment they need to live well for a longer-period.
