Dr. Christina Luong, Clinical Assistant Professor, Division of Cardiology is a recipient of the 2024 Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute Investigator Awards
Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) promotes excellence in health research through the annual VCHRI Investigator Awards. VCHRI facilitates clinician-scientists in their efforts to make new discoveries to improve the health and well-being of patients across their lifespan. The Investigator Awards provide salary support to leading health research investigators to help reduce their clinical commitments and expand their capacity for innovation-driven research that creates new health care knowledge.
For all of the 2024 VCHRI Investigator Award recipients, please visit VCHRI News
DR. CHRISTINA LUONG (Division of Cardiology)
Study: High-precision Echo Assessment and Risk Triage of heart failure using Artificial Intelligence
HOW CAN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TRANSFORM THE DETECTION AND CLASSIFICATION OF HEART FAILURE?
Heart failure stands as one of the most prevalent cardiac conditions, a clinical syndrome associated with significant disability and mortality rates both in Canada and globally. Its prevalence escalates with age, with only a 50 per cent survival rate among patients within five years of diagnosis. Fortunately, there are many medical and device treatments that can improve symptoms and prognosis in patients with this condition.
Comprehensive echocardiography is the standard imaging modality for diagnosing heart failure. However, this test requires expert analysis of video and blood flow measurements, which limits access, particularly in remote settings. As the population ages, the demand for comprehensive echocardiography increases, resulting in prolonged wait times and significant delays in heart failure treatment.
In response to these challenges, Dr. Christina Luong’s research will empower technology for evaluating heart failure in both lab and point-of-care settings. Her solution includes automated detection of markers of heart failure and classification of left ventricular function through the integration of machine learning into ultrasound data analysis.
“We anticipate that our proposed technology will enable frontline physicians to perform point-of-care ultrasound in patients suspected of heart failure,” says Dr. Luong. “This will facilitate the triage of individuals who require comprehensive echocardiogram or specialized care from heart failure specialists, thereby streamlining the diagnostic process and ensuring timely intervention.”
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Luong on this wonderful achievement!
This story originally appeared on VCHRI News