Bridging the Cardiologist Shortage with AI-Powered Heart Scans

As cardiovascular diseases continue to impact a significant portion of the U.S. population, particularly those over 60, the need for timely and accurate cardiac monitoring has never been more critical. However, the shortage of cardiologists and sonographers is creating a significant gap in care. UltraSight’s innovative technology seeks to address this issue by enabling healthcare professionals, including nurses and medical assistants, to perform high-quality heart scans with minimal training. Pharmaceutical Executive sat down with Davidi Vortman, CEO, Ultrasight, to discuss how this technology can help cardiovascular patients.

Pharmaceutical Executive: With cardiovascular diseases affecting 75% of Americans over 60, how does UltraSight’s technology help bridge the gap in timely cardiac monitoring, especially for at-risk patients?

Davidi Vortman: Today, the United States is short 1,600 cardiologists and a similar number of sonographers. There’s a significant gap between supply and demand because ultrasound is the primary diagnostic tool favored by cardiologists. It’s the most accurate and effective choice for assessing cardiac disease.

UltraSight’s technology is helping bridge that gap by enabling any healthcare professional to perform at the level of an expert. We’re training individuals, such as nurses or medical assistants, and within a day, we equip them to consistently perform high-quality heart scans. Today, it typically takes up to a year to become an expert, along with the need for costly mentorship, which is hard to come by.

Expensive investments or outcomes don’t always yield the best results, so we’re eliminating the need for experts to be the only ones capable of performing scans. It’s like introducing a new layer of detection and management that doesn’t exist today.

Full Interview Summary: The U.S. healthcare system faces a significant shortage of cardiologists and sonographers, with about 1,600 unfilled positions in each field, leading to delayed treatment for many patients. Ultrasound, a key diagnostic tool for cardiologists, is bridging this gap by enabling healthcare professionals without extensive training to perform high-quality heart scans. Ultrasight, leveraging AI and deep learning, simplifies this process by guiding users through the procedure with real-time feedback, making it accessible for nurses, medical assistants, and even non-specialists. AI acts as a virtual mentor, providing immediate quality checks and reducing reliance on experts, which streamlines the learning curve and boosts confidence in performing echocardiograms.

Ultrasight has already received FDA 510(k) clearance and CE marking, but broader adoption requires further steps, including building training programs and optimizing workflows, particularly in acute care settings. The company focuses initially on emergency rooms, where rapid cardiac imaging can save lives, enhance triage, and improve patient outcomes. By allowing non-specialists to perform scans, Ultrasight helps reduce delays in diagnosing patients, such as those with syncope, and ensures faster, more accurate triage.

Additionally, Ultrasight's technology is expanding into remote settings. For example, a partnership with Bristol Myers Squibb aims to support patients with cardiomyopathy, allowing remote monitoring of heart health without requiring patients to travel long distances. This decentralization of care enhances accessibility and enables cardiologists to monitor more patients efficiently.

While Ultrasight’s current focus is on cardiology, the technology has potential applications in other areas of medical imaging and diagnostics, but the company remains committed to addressing the significant gap in cardiac care, aiming to improve patient outcomes within the next few years.