Mega Doctor News
By Joel Streed / Mayo Clinic News Network
The stethoscope, one of the most iconic symbols of medicine, was invented over 200 years ago. Today, artificial intelligence is revolutionizing this essential tool, empowering doctors to detect cardiac disease at its earliest stages with greater precision. Discover these groundbreaking advancements on a new episode of Tomorrow’s Cure.
The podcast episode features Dr. Demilade Adedinsewo, cardiologist, and Jason Bellet, co-founder of Eko Health. Together, they discuss innovative and lifesaving technology that is transforming heart health.
The AI-powered digital stethoscope, developed by Eko Health, captures electrocardiogram (ECG) data and heart sounds. This advanced tool enhances the detection of peripartum cardiomyopathy, a serious yet treatable condition that weakens the heart muscle during pregnancy or postpartum.
“There is a diagnostic gap when it comes to how do we identify a high index of suspicion and how we make it to that diagnosis,” explains Dr. Adedinsewo. “Also, we do not have a simple, noninvasive screening test that is safe for mother and the baby.”
Recognizing a weak heart pump caused by pregnancy is crucial because its symptoms — shortness of breath when lying down, swelling in the hands and feet, weight gain, and rapid heartbeat — can easily be mistaken for normal pregnancy-related conditions.
“We really believe that this technology has the ability to improve access to early detection, which then can inform the patient to go to a cardiologist on a more expedited timeline and get the advanced care they need,” Bellet says. “If we can just detect heart murmurs that much better or AFib that much better in the physical exam, we can then get those patients referred into cardiology faster, get the echocardiogram and, hopefully, get the treatment they need earlier.”
This technology holds immense potential to revolutionize the healthcare field.
“Our vision is to create a pipeline of algorithms such that when you put the stethoscope on the chest in a future physical exam, we’ll be able to take those 15 to 30 seconds of heart sounds — and eventually lung sounds — and analyze them for a host of conditions, really turning that wellness visit that we all know with our provider that can be 15, 30 or 45 minutes into a really powerful early detection opportunity,” Bellet says.
To learn more, check out the latest episode of Tomorrow’s Cure wherever you get your podcasts. To see a complete list of episodes and featured experts, visit tomorrowscure.com.
