How AI can help heart patients avoid having needless stents to keep arteries open

Professor William Wijns of University of Galway is hoping for better patient outcomes due to the advancement of AI technology. Photo: Martina Regan

Eilish O'Regan

Heart disease patients in Ireland and across the world can look forward to better outcomes and avoiding unnecessary treatments due to artificial intelligence advances, a leading cardiologist and researcher at University of Galway has said.

Professor of Interventional Cardiology William Wijns said that angiograms were routinely used to look at blood vessels, allowing doctors to check for flow blockages. But due to limitations around this form of test, it is estimated that diagnosis and treatment of patients through the cardio-angiogram can lead to the inappropriate use of stents which are used to keep arteries open but carry risks like blood clots.