ATLANTA – A new study published in the European Heart Journal has found that analyzing mammograms with artificial intelligence or AI can lead to better detection of cardiovascular disease in women, the leading cause of death in the U.S.
The retrospective study led by Hari Trivedi, MD, an associate professor in the Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences and the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Emory University School of Medicine, says this technique could help identify the disproportionate number of women who have gone undiagnosed and untreated for heart disease.
“Mammograms hold significant information about a women’s heart health, which we can now discover using AI. It’s important for every woman to have a conversation with their doctor about their results and whether taking preventative steps would be necessary,” says Trivedi.
The study included 123,762 women between the ages of 40 and 79 years from Emory Healthcare and another large health care system. The women had taken part in breast screenings but had no known cardiovascular disease. Trivedi and his team used AI technology to analyze the amount of calcium deposits in the arteries of the breast tissue.
“The relationship between breast arterial calcification and cardiovascular disease has been known for decades, but we now have the ability to precisely measure it and track it over time,” says Trivedi.
Breast arterial calcification, also known as BAC, is a sign that the arteries are becoming hardened and indicates a higher risk of conditions such as heart attack, heart failure, stroke and death. The amount of arterial calcification in the women’s breast tissue can be measured precisely and categorized as severe, moderate, mild or absent. Women with mild calcification were found to be around 30% more likely to suffer serious cardiovascular disease compared to women with no calcification. In women with moderate calcification, the risk was more than 70% higher and in women with severe calcification, the risk was two to three times higher.
“Women are recommended to start mammograms at age 40. Women under 50 are typically not considered at risk for cardiovascular disease and may not even be screened. So, the fact that we see a link between breast calcification and heart health in women under 50 is a really important finding,” Trivedi explains.
The researchers were awarded grants by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for this study, including National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Award Number R01HL167811 and NIH Award Number R01HL174650-01. In addition, this research was, in part, funded by NIH Agreement No. 1OT2OD032581.
