How AI is transforming simple eye tests into a window for detecting heart failure, dementia, and neurological risk early.
A new study by an interdisciplinary group of scientists from The University of Manchester has hypothesised that advances in AI may one day allow us to detect signs of heart and brain diseases through a routine eye test.
Using different forms of data, including body measurements and genetics, the authors concluded that there is a potential future in which AI may be able to assess how your body is faring simply through a standard eye test.
(Now, yes, that probably means you’ll still have to endure that God-awful pressure spray in your eye and stare down the lens at the little house at the end of the road — the main reason I put off going to the optometrist to update my glasses.)
The study found similarities and broad associations between the biology of the eye and the risk of heart failure, high blood pressure, heart attack, Parkinson’s disease, dementia and more.
Using different scanning methods — 3D scans of the inner lining of the eye (OCT) and simple photographs of the back of the eye called ‘colour fundus photographs’ (CFP) — the authors noted that these tools are already highly accessible to the UK public, meaning this advancement could become a widely available health marker.
They found that OCT was strongly linked to neurological traits, while CFP was more broadly connected to cardiovascular health.
AI systems were able to connect features of the eye to biological pathways through the appearance of blood vessels and nerves linked to the brain.
Lead author Dr Tom Julian, an eye doctor and researcher at The University of Manchester and Manchester Royal Eye Hospital, commented on the research, stating: “Our findings show that the eye can reveal a remarkably broad picture of whole-body health, offering a way to identify those at risk of heart and brain disease before they occur.”
