A test that takes less than a minute may be able to predict the likelihood of you having a heart attack or stroke over the next 10 years, according to recent research findings.
Scientist used artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse digital retinal photographs, which are taken to capture images from the back of the eye to look for certain conditions. The technology was able to generate customised risk assessments in just seconds, with the hope that the simple test will become part of routine health screenings like blood pressure and cholesterol tests.
This would allow healthcare professionals to pick up any indicators as early as possible. In a study featured in the journal Cardiovascular Diabetology, the University of Dundee's researchers put the AI system to the test on retinal scans from individuals with type 2 diabetes.
Patients with this form of diabetes undergo regular eye examinations to detect diabetic retinopathy, where elevated blood sugar levels can harm the retina's blood vessels.
Dr Ify Mordi, a British Heart Foundation research fellow at the University of Dundee and a consultant cardiologist, said: "It may be surprising, but the eyes are a window to the heart."
"If there is damage or narrowing of the blood vessels at the back of the eye, there is a good chance that will also be seen in the blood vessels further inside the body, supplying the heart, which could lead to a heart attack or stroke."
