Scientists are trialling a new type of heart scanning technology that could lead to new life-saving treatments.
The trial is being carried out by the University of Edinburgh with funding from the British Heart Foundation (BHF).
The new imaging techniques have been designed to detect scar tissue as it is formed on the heart.
Scar tissue is normal in cases of heart attacks and heart valve disease.
However, excessive build-up of scar tissue can stop the heart beating properly.
Current technologies are only able to detect the scarring after it has formed, and only in certain places.
If successful, the researchers will be able to see and understand how the scars are formed, potentially paving the way to better treatments.
Professor Marc Dweck, chair of clinical cardiology at the University of Edinburgh said:
“Our understanding of how scarring develops in the heart muscle isn’t very good.
“We don’t really understand the processes that turn it on, the processes that turn it off, and the processes that cause it to carry on when we don’t want it to and lead to heart failure.
“That’s where this scanning technology is exciting, because we’re able to study that in in our patients whilst they have heart disease.”
Scarring is an important target because it is the cause of all forms of heart failure, Prof Dweck said.
He added:
“If you have a heart attack, in the early stages the scarring is good because it lets the heart heal up, stops it from rupturing and stops the patient from dying.
“But if the scarring is excessive, then that leads to heart failure.
“I think we’re really going to learn a lot, and I think that will accelerate the development of new treatments for heart failure and other heart muscle conditions.”
Prof Dweck’s research is just one of 100 projects being funded by the BHF in Scottish universities.
James Jopling, Head of BHF Scotland, said:
“This is an example of how cutting-edge research is transforming our understanding of heart disease, including coronary heart disease – the cause of most heart attacks – and one of Scotland’s biggest killers.”
Meanwhile, researchers at the University of Leeds have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system that analyses eye scans to identify patients at risk of a heart attack.
The AI system has an accuracy of between 70 and 80 percent, the researchers said.
