Overview

• Temple University Hospital has integrated the VEST algorithm into its electronic medical record system to automatically flag echocardiogram data for PAH risk during routine exams.
• An April study in the American Heart Journal showed VEST’s automated scores closely matched manual calculations and reliably identified high-risk patients.
• Analysis of earlier VEST applications found patients were flagged an average of over 200 days before clinical referral, with one-third of high-risk individuals never having seen a specialist.
• Patients triaged by VEST and referred to expert centers consistently underwent right heart catheterization, confirming serious pulmonary vascular disease and enabling timely treatment.
• Plans are underway to expand VEST nationally and internationally, with independent validation studies set to address potential conflicts of interest related to its lead author’s financial stake.