Analysing four photographs of a person's face from selfies could be a cheap and simple way of detecting heart disease, according to a new study. The study, published in the European Heart Journal, is the first to show that it is possible to use a deep learning computer algorithm to detect coronary artery disease (CAD). The researchers say it has the potential to be used as a screening tool that could identify possible heart disease in people in the general population or in high-risk groups, who could be referred for further clinical investigations. "To our knowledge, this is the first work demonstrating that artificial intelligence can be used to analyse faces to detect heart disease. It is a step towards the development of a deep learning-based tool that could be used to assess the risk of heart disease, either in outpatient clinics or by means of patients taking'selfies' to perform their own screening. This could guide further diagnostic testing or a clinical visit," said Professor Zhe Zheng, who led the research and is vice director of the National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases and vice president of Fuwai Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing.

Robots can diagnose heart problems in as little as four seconds, tests have shown, as a review of artificial intelligence (AI) found machines are now as good at spotting illness as doctors. Analysing a patient's heart function on a cardiac MRI scan currently takes doctors around 13 minutes. But a new trial by University College London (UCL) showed an AI programme could read the scans in a fraction of the time with equal accuracy. There are approximately 150,000 such scans performed in the UK each year, and researchers estimate that fully utilising AI to read them could save 54 clinician-days at each cardiac centre per year. It is hoped that AI - where computer systems are able to learn from data to identify new patterns with minimal human intervention - will transform medicine by helping doctors spot diseases such heart disease and cancer quicker and earlier.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has already proven useful in the healthcare industry, and now, two newly developed AI diagnostics systems could change how doctors diagnose heart disease and lung cancer. Cardiologists are very good at their jobs, but they're not infallible. To determine whether or not something's wrong with a patient's heart, a cardiologist will assess the timing of their heartbeat in scans. According to a report by BBC News, 80 percent of the time, their diagnosis of various heart problems is correct, but it's the remaining 20 percent that shows the process has room for improvement. To that end, a team of researchers from the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England, developed Ultromics, an AI diagnostics system that is more accurate than doctors at diagnosing heart disease. Ultromics was trained using the heart scans of 1,000 patients treated by the company's chief medical officer, Paul Leeson, as well as information about whether or not those patients went on to suffer heart problems.

An Oxford hospital is using an AI'doctor' that can quickly and accurately diagnose heart disease. The AI is more accurate than the best cardiologists and experts claim it has the potential to'save the NHS'. The system has been successful in the early trials and, if its results are confirmed, similar AI scans could soon be available for free on the NHS. An Oxford hospital is using an AI'doctor' that can quickly and accurately diagnose heart disease. The AI is more accurate than the best cardiologists and experts claim it has the potential to'save the NHS'.

Called Ultromics, it was trained to identify potential problems in the scans of 1,000 patients treated over the past seven years, along with information about whether they went on to have heart problems. "As cardiologists, we accept that we don't always get it right at the moment," Prof Leeson said. "But now there is a possibility that way may be able to do better." Prof Sir Malcolm Grant, the chairman of NHS England, said in 2015 that artificial intelligence would bring NHS patients a greater quality of care by better diagnosing medical conditions and personalising treatment. He said the health service would benefit hugely from the use of machine learning and robots, suggesting that if such technology could outperform humans, it would be "daft" not to use it.

IBM's Watson technology has helped doctors before, but usually by poring through databases before offering its advice. Now, it's ready to look at the patients themselves -- or rather, their body scans. The AI platform can sift through ultrasounds, x-rays and other medical data to both fill out health records and identify patients who might need critical care. The imaging tech will first be used to diagnose patients with aortic stenosis, where the heart's aortic valve narrows and constricts blood flow. Watson will combine heart imagery with medical records to spot patients who might need follow-up treatments.