Korea Biomedical Reviewㅣ 2024-11-15
Medical AI company Mediwhale will release three research abstracts on its AI-powered cardiovascular disease (CVD) prediction software, Reti-CVD, at the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2024, which will be held from Saturday to Monday at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, Ill.
The study used large-scale retinal image datasets from Korea, the U.K., and Spain, demonstrating Reti-CVD’s efficacy in predicting coronary artery calcium (CAC) scores measured through cardiac CT across diverse populations.
The findings suggest that Reti-CVD could identify patients at high risk of CVD and serve as a valuable diagnostic tool for guiding treatment decisions. According to Mediwhale, the CAC score, which gauges calcium deposits in the coronary arteries, is recognized as one of the most accurate indicators of cardiovascular disease risk.
The first study analyzed data from 45,858 individuals aged 21-90, collected from a large health screening center in Korea, to examine the correlation between Reti-CVD scores and CAC scores. Results showed that both scores increased with age, with men displaying a higher cardiovascular risk within the same age range. Mediwhale said this supports Reti-CVD’s potential to provide demographic-specific risk assessments based on age and sex.
In the second study, Reti-CVD’s accuracy in predicting CAC presence was evaluated in Korean and Spanish populations. It achieved high accuracy rates of 84.5 percent in Korea and 85.1 percent in Spain. According to Mediwhale, this indicates the model’s capability to effectively predict CAC presence in diverse populations.
The third study leveraged the U.K. Biobank data to assess statin therapy outcomes using Reti-CVD. Comparing a decade’s worth of data from 3,000 high-risk patients on statins and 3,000 who were not, the study found a 36 percent reduction in CVD incidence among high-risk patients with elevated Reti-CVD scores who took statins.
Mediwhale’s Chief Medical Officer Rim Hyung-taek said it is “significant for Mediwhale to have three abstracts accepted during the AHA’s centennial year.”
Mediwhale is expanding Reti-CVD’s adoption across university hospitals, screening centers, and local clinics in Korea. The company is also preparing for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s De Novo clearance in 2025 to enter the U.S. market.
Founded in 1924, the AHA and its centennial Scientific Sessions will feature advances in cardiovascular medicine, including quality of care, imaging, and novel interventions, Mediwhale said.