Use of Artificial Intelligence to Detect Cardiac Rhythm Disturbances in Athletes: A Scoping Review.
Authors: Kapusniak Amie, Lara Natalia Medrano, Hitchens Peta L, Bailey Simon, Nath Laura, Franklin Samantha
Journal: Journal of veterinary internal medicine
Summary
# Editorial Summary: AI-Assisted ECG Analysis in Equine Athletes Sudden cardiac death remains a significant welfare and performance concern in equine athletes, with exercise-associated arrhythmias occurring at substantially higher rates than in human sports medicine; yet current ECG interpretation relies on manual analysis that is both labour-intensive and subject to considerable inter-observer variation. This scoping review examined how artificial intelligence technologies are being deployed to automate and standardise cardiac rhythm detection in horses, drawing on approaches already established in human cardiology where AI-assisted ECG interpretation has demonstrated improved diagnostic consistency. The findings highlight a substantial gap between human and equine applications: whilst AI algorithms for arrhythmia detection are well-validated in human athletes and clinical populations, equivalent equine-specific tools remain largely underdeveloped, with most evidence relating to general rhythm classification rather than exercise-induced disturbances or their prognostic significance. For equine practitioners, this represents both a challenge and an opportunity—the current reliance on subjective ECG reading means that clinically significant arrhythmias may be missed or, conversely, benign disturbances may trigger unnecessary restrictions on athletic use. Developing and validating AI systems trained on large equine ECG datasets could substantially improve risk stratification in pre-purchase examinations and fitness assessments, enabling more evidence-based decisions about which horses are genuinely at risk of sudden cardiac events versus those with physiologically normal exercise-associated rhythm changes.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •AI-assisted ECG interpretation may help standardize cardiac rhythm assessment in athletic horses and reduce interpretation time for veterinarians
- •Understanding which arrhythmias detected on ECG have clinical significance for exercise safety is crucial for managing athlete horses at risk of sudden cardiac death
- •Implementation of AI tools could improve consistency in identifying horses with concerning rhythm disturbances before they compete
Key Findings
- •Exercise-associated arrhythmias in equine athletes occur at higher rates linked to sudden cardiac death compared to humans
- •ECG interpretation in horses remains time-consuming and subjective with unclear clinical relevance of mild rhythm disturbances
- •Artificial intelligence has potential to enhance ECG interpretation in equine medicine similar to its application in human medicine