How eye scans could pick up signs of common heart condition atrial fibrillation years before diagnosis

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Eye scans could assist in identifying a widespread heart condition that heightens stroke risks years before diagnosis, a study has found.

Researchers said the technique provides a non-invasive method to alert patients to atrial fibrillation (AF) prior to it “causes real harm”.

Scientists analysed records from over 90,000 individuals and discovered that those affected possessed distinct biological markers in their retina, the light-sensitive tissue layer in the eye that detects light and converts it into signals for the brain.

Around 1.5 million people in the UK are estimated to have AF, which brings about an irregular heartbeat, though hundreds of thousands more may be living undiagnosed.

AF sometimes presents without symptoms and is intermittent, meaning it can be missed during diagnostic heart checks known as electrocardiograms (ECGs).

Moorfields Eye Hospital of John Brewer (right) with Josef Huemer, consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital. Mr Brewer discovered he had AF during cataract surgery at the hospital (PA)

Although the condition is not directly life-threatening, it can produce blood clots that lead to strokes.

Researchers at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and UCL Institute of Ophthalmology looked at data from 50,651 taking part in the AlzEye study and 39,013 people from the UK Biobank.

In total, some 6,261 patients already had AF.

The analysis found that these people tended to have thinner retinal layers.

Patients who did not have AF at the time their eye scans were taken but went on to develop the condition also had thinner retinal layers four years prior to attending hospital on average.

Moorfields patient John Brewer, from Croydon, discovered he had AF while having surgery to remove cataracts earlier this year.

When the team noticed his heartbeat was unsteady he was given an ECG and medicine to allow the operation to continue, and a cardiologist later confirmed the diagnosis.

Mr Brewer said: “It would have been so much easier if my AF had been detected earlier through a routine retinal scan at one of my regular appointments, rather than on the operating table, which was a very distressing experience for my wife and I.”

Experts suggest that while eye scans would not replace ECGs to diagnose AF, they could be a “complementary tool”.

Siegfried Wagner, of UCL, said: “This large-scale analysis shows that retinal imaging can pick up on structural changes within the eye that are clearly linked to AF.

“For patients, the value of this kind of eye imaging is that it is easy to access, quick and doesn’t involve any invasive procedures.

“Although not intended to replace ECG-based diagnosis, retinal imaging could act as a complementary tool, catching those most at risk of AF before it causes real harm.”

Lead author Josef Huemer, consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital, said: “If confirmed in further research, our findings raise the possibility that routine eye examinations could, in future, help identify people who would benefit from closer cardiac assessment, potentially enabling earlier treatment with therapies known to reduce the risk of stroke.”

The findings have been published in the journal Plos Digital Health.