Singapore develops AI tool that can analyse heart attack damage within a single minute

SINGAPORE: The National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS) has developed an artificial intelligence (AI) platform capable of analysing heart muscle damage caused by a heart attack in under a minute, a breakthrough that could help doctors assess patients more quickly and consistently.

Known as CARDIA-GM, the platform automatically analyses cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans to identify and measure two key indicators of damage following a heart attack — scarred heart muscle tissue and microvascular obstruction.

According to NHCS, the AI platform completes the analysis in less than 60 seconds while achieving an accuracy rate of 95 per cent. The research validating the technology has also been accepted for publication in the Journal of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance.

Assessing these two markers is important because they provide doctors with critical information about the extent of heart muscle damage after a heart attack, helping to guide treatment decisions and evaluate a patient’s recovery.

Heart disease remains a major health concern in Singapore. Cardiovascular disease is the country’s leading cause of death, accounting for nearly one in three fatalities. More than 13,000 heart attack episodes are recorded each year, underscoring the need for tools that can support faster and more reliable diagnosis.

NHCS said CARDIA-GM was developed to automate the interpretation of cardiac MRI scans, reducing the time required for clinicians to analyse images while maintaining a high level of accuracy.

The project has received funding support from the National Health Innovation Centre, which is backing the continued development of the platform.

CARDIA-GM is currently undergoing a 12-month development phase. Following this, NHCS plans to deploy the AI platform across multiple medical centres in Singapore, with the aim of making advanced heart attack assessment more widely available within the healthcare system.