Oxford scientists have developed an artificial intelligence tool that can predict the risk of heart failure up to five years before it develops. The technology, which analyses fat around the heart for signs of inflammation invisible to the human eye, demonstrated 86% accuracy in a study involving 72,000 patients across nine NHS trusts in England.
Heart failure affects over 60 million people worldwide, occurring when the heart cannot pump blood effectively. The AI tool, created by a team at the University of Oxford, provides a risk score from routine cardiac CT scans, enabling doctors to identify high-risk patients earlier and tailor treatments accordingly. Patients in the highest risk group were 20 times more likely to develop heart failure within five years than those in the lowest risk group, with about a one in four chance.
The research, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, followed patients for a decade after their CT scans. Professor Charalambos Antoniades, who led the study, said: 'We have used developments in bioscience and computing to take a big step forward in treating heart failure.' The team is now working to apply the method to any chest CT scan and is seeking regulatory approval for NHS use.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation, which funded the study, said: 'Heart failure is consistently diagnosed too late... This tool could help doctors spot heart failure earlier, by monitoring more closely those at highest risk.' Early diagnosis allows for better management and improved outcomes, she added.
