CINCINNATI (November 3, 2025) – The Christ Hospital Health Network is using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze electrocardiograms (ECG) with improved detection of severe heart attacks. The software was able to detect heart attacks more quickly and with better accuracy than standard of care and markedly reduced false positives in Cath lab activations. The study was recently published in JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions with Timothy Henry, MD, Interventional Cardiologist and Medical Director of The Christ Hospital Lindner Center for Research and Education, as the lead investigator.
ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a severe type of heart attack where the major coronary artery is blocked, preventing blood flow to the heart muscle. Quickly restoring blood flow using percutaneous coronary intervention is the standard of care; however, delays in achieving the guideline-recommended time to reperfusion still persist, especially at hospitals and centers not specializing in PCI and in rural areas. Time to reperfusion longer than 90 minutes is associated with threefold higher rates of mortality.
“AI-driven ECG interpretation is a promising tool to enhance triage accuracy for diagnosis of STEMI,” said Dr. Henry. “These results indicate AI enhancement of STEMI diagnosis has the potential to improve time to treatment and decrease false activation. This may be especially helpful in appropriate transfer of STEMI patients from centers without Cardiac Cath Labs.”
In one of the first, large, real-world evaluations of an AI–based ECG model for STEMI triage in the emergency setting, researchers retrospectively looked at 1,032 people with suspected STEMI who were recommended for emergency reperfusion. Data was from three geographically diverse PCI centers between January 2020 and May 2024. Each patient’s diagnostic ECG underwent AI ECG analysis trained to detect acute STEMI.
Angiography and biomarkers confirmed that 601 (58%) were STEMIs and 431 (42%) were false positive. The AI model did better than standard of care, detecting 553 of 601 confirmed STEMIs vs. 427 detected by standard of care on the first ECG. In addition, AI had a false positive rate of 7.9% vs. 41.8% for standard of care. This will result in shorter time to treatments.
About The Christ Hospital Health Network
The Christ Hospital Health Network consists of an acute care hospital located in Mt. Auburn, a remote hospital location in Liberty Township, five ambulatory outpatient centers and dozens of medical offices throughout the region. For more than 135 years, The Christ Hospital has provided compassionate care to those it serves. Made up of more than 1,300 physicians and more than 7,200 team members, our mission is to improve the health of our community by providing exceptional outcomes in an affordable way. The Network was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as the #1 hospital in the Cincinnati Region, named to Newsweek’s World’s Best Hospitals list in 2025.
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) is a global leader dedicated to transforming cardiovascular care and improving heart health for all. For more than 75 years, the ACC has empowered a community of over 60,000 cardiovascular professionals across more than 140 countries with cutting-edge education and advocacy, rigorous professional credentials, and trusted clinical guidance. From its world-class JACC Journals and NCDR registries to its Accreditation Services, global network of Chapters and Sections, and CardioSmart patient initiatives, the College is committed to creating a world where science, knowledge and innovation optimize patient care and outcomes. Learn more at www.ACC.org or connect on social media at @ACCinTouch.
The ACC’s JACC Journals rank among the top cardiovascular journals in the world for scientific impact. The flagship journal, the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) — and specialty journals consisting of JACC: Advances, JACC: Asia, JACC: Basic to Translational Science, JACC: CardioOncology, JACC: Cardiovascular Imaging, JACC: Cardiovascular Interventions, JACC: Case Reports, JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology and JACC: Heart Failure — pride themselves on publishing the top peer-reviewed research on all aspects of cardiovascular disease. Learn more at JACC.org.