Using AI to Improve Chronic Disease Outcomes

This article reports the results of a study that follows a multi-year, pragmatic clinical trial in a real world, community based primary care. What started as a quality project evolved to include the development and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) decision support to guide medication choices when treating hypertension (HTN). Results show that primary care physicians significantly improved HTN outcomes as compared to the national average of success. All patients with a hypertension diagnosis were tracked across three years–including the COVID pandemic period. Of the 13, 441 HTN patients 94% had a blood pressure "at goal" (i.e. less than 140/90)–as of their last clinician visit. The last published study of US blood pressure control which occurred prior to the pandemic was 44%. Because the use of AI in primary care is novel as of this writing, the concept of AI is often unfamiliar to many practicing clinicians and medical group leaders.