A stethoscope equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) could help detect three different cardiac conditions in seconds, researchers say.
The original stethoscope, invented in 1816, allows doctors to hear the internal sounds of the patient's body.
But now, the UK team has designed something that can find heart failure, heart valve disease, and abnormal heart rhythms.
The groundbreaking AI-powered tool is a “real game changer,” which could lead to patients being treated faster, researchers say they plan to deploy devices across the country.
The new device replaces the traditional chest with a card-sized device. Use a microphone to analyze subtle differences between heartbeat and blood flow that human ears cannot detect.
Research by Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust included over 200 GP surgeries in London.
Over 12,000 patients from 96 surgeries were examined with an AI stethoscope and subsequently compared to patients with 109 GP surgery without the technology used.
Those tested with the device are 2.33 times more likely to be diagnosed with heart failure in the next 12 months, the researchers said.
Abnormal heartbeat patterns that are free of symptoms but may increase the risk of stroke were 3.5 times detectable by AI acoustics, while heart valve disease was 1.9 times detectable.
“This is an elegant example of a humble infiltration area invented over 200 years ago and can be upgraded to the 21st century,” said Dr. Sonya Babu Narayan, clinical director and consultant cardiologist at the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
Such innovations are essential because they are “often diagnosed” as they are “often diagnosed” as patients are diagnosed only when they are present in a hospital as an emergency.
“Given previous diagnosis, people have access to the treatment they need to help them live longer.”
The findings were presented to thousands of doctors at the annual meeting of the European Heart Association in Madrid, the world's largest heart conference.
There are plans to deploy new stethoscopes in GP practices in Wales, South London and Sussex.
