AI-powered technology that can detect ‘invisible’ risk in people with possible heart disease has been given the go-ahead to be used by doctors across the UK and Europe, and can now be rolled out across the NHS.

Research funded by The British Heart Foundation (BHF) led to the EU approval of the technology.

CaRi-Heart, developed by Caristo Diagnostics, can detect risks in people with possible heart disease by using routine heart scans already performed in clinical practice.

People who are identified at high risk of a future heart attack can be given personalised medication and monitored more closely to prevent one.

According to The BHF, while 350,000 people in the UK have a CCTA scan every year, 75 per cent of these scans do not show significant narrowing of the arteries. This means people are sent home without treatment, yet some of them will still go on to have a heart attack in the future.

But CaRi-Heart performs a deeper dive into the CCTA scans to reveal the ‘red flags’ beneath their surface, identifying the ‘ticking time bomb’ arteries that cause heart attacks.

The technology works by using AI and deep-learning technology to produce a Fat Attenuation Index Score (FAI-Score), which accurately measures inflammation of blood vessels in and around the heart.

The scientific work that underpins Caristo Diagnostics was initially carried out by BHF researchers at the University of Oxford.

The BHF funded study involved about 4,000 patients who were followed up for nine years after their original CCTA scan.

The study found that people with an abnormal FAI were up to nine times more likely to die of a heart attack in the next nine years than those with normal FAI readings.

The study also showed that at least one third of patients who underwent a routine CCTA and were initially considered low risk had a much higher risk after CaRi-Heart was applied to their scan.

The researchers are now looking at ways to use the technology to better predict an individual’s risk of developing stroke and diabetes by analysing routine CT scans.

They are also developing an AI tool to specifically identify Covid-19 patients who are at high risk of having a future heart attack or stroke.

“The development and approval of this new AI tool is a major success story. It’s a prime example of how BHF-funded research can lay the foundations for a truly transformational advance in the diagnosis and prevention of heart and circulatory diseases,” said professor James Leiper, associate medical director at the BHF.

“This research exemplifies the fundamental role medical research charities play in the translation of scientific research into the commercial and clinical sectors, which ultimately benefits the UK’s scientific ecosystem and patients with cardiovascular disease."

He added: “Sadly, the pandemic has had a devastating blow to the BHF’s research spend, cutting it in half by £50 million this year alone. We need the kind support of the public more than ever to continue our life-saving research so more projects like this can get off the ground.”

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