A recent research study has found that the shape of one’s heart could be a determining factor for developing heart diseases. Investigators from the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai concluded that people with round shaped hearts are more likely to develop heart failure and atrial fibrillation than people with a more traditional Valentine-like shaped hearts. To arrive at this conclusion, deep learning and specialized imaging analysis were used to analyze the genetics of heart structures of 38,897 people from the UK Biobank.
Among their findings, four specific genes, PLN, ANGPT1, PDZRN3 and HLA DR/DQ were identified that increase heart health risks. Atrial Fibrillation, the most common type of abnormal heart rhythm disorder, increases one’s risk of stroke, with projections indicating 12.1 million people in the US would suffer from it by 2030. Similarly, cardiomyopathy, a type of heart muscle disease, makes it hard for the heart to pump blood, and could eventually lead to heart failure.
Christine M. Albert, MD and Chair of the Department of Cardiology at the Smidt Heart Institute highlighted that changes in heart shape could be a first indication of the onset of such cardiac conditions and analyzing them through cardiac MRI images could help in preventing such diseases. David Ouyang, MD, a cardiologist with the Smidt Heart Institute, added that understanding these variations in structure and function with the help of computational models and deep learning could help in making earlier diagnoses and preventing diseases up to years or even decades before they become apparent.
Cedars-Sinai is renowned, non-profit academic medical center and a leader in providing high-quality, compassionate health care. With research, education and clinical innovation and activities, the organization is dedicated to bringing the highest quality healthcare to their local, regional and global populations.
Dr. David Ouyang is a cardiologist with the Smidt Heart Institute, researcher in the Division of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine and a study author of the research published in Med–Cell Press. He has completed research and received specialized training in hospital administration and medical management systems at UCLA and Harvard Medical School. He is passionate about developing feasible, function-oriented approaches for healthcare and healthcare delivery and has received numerous awards for his research.
