AI tool takes leads from ECGs to help diagnose heart conditions

In a study published on August 1, 2024, in npj Digital Medicine, the scientists from Scripps Research in California report that their AI algorithm can recreate full 12-lead ECGs with data from only three ECG leads.

Moreover, clinicians can identify heart attacks with nearly the same accuracy when they review the AI-generated ECGs as compared to original 12-lead ECGs, which are complex arrangements of electrodes and wires placed around the chest and limbs to detect the heart’s electrical activity.

In a statement, co-senior author and cardiologist Evan Muse, MD, PhD said: “This opens up the door to patients being able to get really high-quality, time-sensitive clinical data without travelling to somewhere that has a 12-lead ECG. It likely means not only increased access to ECG technology, but decreased costs and improved patient safety.”

To build the new AI tool, the team used data from over 600,000 12-lead ECGs that had been collected from patients. About half of those ECGs had normal health rhythms, while the rest had a variety of heart conditions.