Stethoscopes powered by artificial intelligence (AI) could help detect three different heart conditions in seconds, researchers say.
The original stethoscope, invented in 1816, allows doctors to listen to the internal sounds of a patient’s body.
But now a British team have designed one that can spot heart failure, heart valve disease and abnormal heart rhythms almost instantly.
The breakthrough AI-powered tool could be a “real game-changer” resulting in patients being treated sooner, the researchers say, with plans to roll the device out across the country.
The new device replaces the traditional chest piece with a device around the size of a playing card. It uses a microphone to analyse subtle differences in heartbeat and blood flow that the human ear cannot detect.
The study by Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust involved more than 200 GP surgeries in London.
More than 12,000 patients from 96 surgeries were examined with the AI stethoscope and were then compared to patients from 109 GP surgeries where the technology was not used.
Those examined with the device were 2.33 times more likely to be diagnosed with heart failure in the next 12 months, researchers said.
Abnormal heartbeat patterns, which have no symptoms but can increase stroke risk, were 3.5 times more detectable with the AI stethoscopes, while heart valve disease was 1.9 times more detectable.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and consultant cardiologist, said: “This is an elegant example of how the humble stethoscope, invented more than 200 years ago, can be upgraded for the 21st century”.
Such innovations are vital “because so often this condition is only diagnosed at an advanced stage when patients attend hospital as an emergency”, she said.
“Given an earlier diagnosis, people can access the treatment they need to help them live well for longer.”
The findings have been presented to thousands of doctors at the European Society of Cardiology annual congress in Madrid, the world’s largest heart conference.
There are plans to roll out the new stethoscopes to GP practices in Wales, south London and Sussex.
