New AI model screens high-risk heart patients for elevated Lp(a)
A new artificial intelligence (AI) model can help clinicians identify more patients with elevated lipoprotein(a) levels, according to new findings published in JACC: Advances.[1] Lipoprotein(a), also known as Lp(a), is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease believed to be responsible for many surprise heart attacks. Learning more about the identification, and potential treatment, of elevated Lp(a) levels has emerged as a priority among research teams in recent years.
This specific study examined the potential of the FIND LP(a) machine learning model, which was trained and tested on data from nearly 350,000 adults with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD). All data came from the Family Heart Database.
Overall, patients identified with the FIND Lp(a) model were 2.2 times more likely to have high Lp(a) than the overall population of adults with ASCVD. This was true when using the AI model to flag patients with Lp(a) ≥125 nmol/L, ≥150 nmol/L or ≥200 nmol/L. Additional testing is already underway to learn more about how this advanced machine learning model could improve patient care for patients with high Lp(a) levels.
The Family Heart Foundation (FHF), an advocacy group focused on learning more about Lp(a) and familiar hypercholesterolemia, issued a statement highlighting the significance of these data. FHF is responsible for both the Family Heart Database and the FIND Lp(a) AI model. Diane MacDougall, MS, the lead author of this new study, is FHF’s vice president of research.
“Although recently released U.S. dyslipidemia guidelines recommend Lp(a) screening for all adults, integrating this into routine clinical practice will take many years, if not decades,” MacDougall said in the statement. “The FIND Lp(a) model supports targeted screening by helping identify people most likely to have high Lp(a), accelerating the adoption of universal screening and creating more opportunities for individuals living with high Lp(a) and their healthcare teams to manage cardiovascular risk.”
Novartis funded this analysis. The company has been focused on developing heart drugs for patients with elevated Lp(a) levels for years, though its Lp(a)HORIZON clinical trial recently fell short of industry expectations.
Click here to read the full study in JACC: Advances, an American College of Cardiology publication.
Michael has more than 19 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.