AI smart T-shirt could spot hidden heart risks — your next ECG may come from a shirt in your dresser
Researchers at Imperial College London have developed an AI-powered smart T-shirt with woven ECG sensors to detect inherited heart rhythm disorders often missed by short ECGs, offering continuous, washable monitoring that could prevent sudden cardiac deaths.
Key takeaways
- Continuous monitoring: The T-shirt contains up to 50 woven ECG-style sensors to record days or weeks of heart electrical signals.
- AI analysis: Algorithms trained on 1,000+ ECGs will scan long recordings to flag subtle or intermittent abnormalities for clinician review.
- Patient-friendly design: Soft, washable, sportswear-style fabric aims to boost adherence compared with sticky electrode monitors.
- Next steps: A feasibility study of ~200 volunteers will test real-world use; clinical rollout could take about five years if trials and regulation succeed.
Key information
- What: An AI smart T-shirt with up to 50 woven ECG-style sensors that records continuous heart electrical signals.
- Who: Led by Professor Zachary Whinnett at Imperial College London’s National Heart and Lung Institute; funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) with NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre support.
- Why: To detect inherited heart rhythm disorders — such as Brugada syndrome — that often escape brief hospital ECGs and short home monitors.
- How: AI trained on ECG data from more than 1,000 people will analyze days or weeks of recordings; a feasibility study (~200 volunteers) will evaluate performance.
- When: Researchers estimate potential clinical use in about five years, contingent on trials and regulatory review.
How the smart T-shirt works
Researchers describe a soft, sportswear-style shirt with sensors woven into the fabric so it can be worn under normal clothing, during sleep, and washed — enabling extended monitoring in daily life. Current hospital ECGs typically last ~10 minutes; home adhesive monitors record 24–48 hours. The shirt records continuous electrical signals for days or longer, increasing the chance of catching intermittent dangerous rhythms.
AI element: Imperial’s team trained algorithms on ECG traces from over 1,000 individuals, including people with inherited rhythm disorders and healthy controls. That dataset helps the system learn patterns that are normal and patterns that may indicate problems like Brugada syndrome, which can be fleeting and hard to catch on short tests.
“Far too many people die from inherited heart conditions which could be treated if they were identified earlier… We hope our AI-assisted t-shirt will provide a practical and comfortable solution.” — Professor Zachary Whinnett
Design and patient comfort
A major advantage is convenience: traditional home ECGs use sticky electrodes and leads that must be removed for showering, which limits wear time. The T-shirt’s washable, flexible sensors are designed for long stretches of wear — from work to sleep — potentially dramatically increasing monitoring time and the chance of detecting intermittent abnormalities.
Data channels: With up to 50 sensors, clinicians receive many channels of electrical data, providing a richer view of heart activity over time than single-lead or short-duration ECGs. That additional data helps capture events that appear under specific conditions, such as during sleep or after exercise.
Testing plan and timeline
Imperial will run a feasibility study with about 200 volunteers at Hammersmith Hospital’s Peart-Rose Research Unit. Participants will wear the shirt continuously for up to three months while the AI flags suspicious patterns for clinician review.
Funding includes a British Heart Foundation grant worth more than £340,000, with support from the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre. Researchers estimate a path to clinical practice of roughly five years, dependent on trial outcomes and regulatory approvals.
Why longer monitoring matters
A 10‑minute ECG is valuable for many common problems, but inherited rhythm disorders are often intermittent. Dangerous patterns may appear for minutes or hours and then vanish; a short test can miss them and give false reassurance. Reviewing days or weeks of data provides context and helps clinicians identify recurring or rare events, enabling follow-up tests, treatments, or lifestyle changes that reduce sudden cardiac death risk.
Public health context in the UK
Inherited heart rhythm disorders affect an estimated 340,000 people in the UK. Symptoms can include chest pain, dizziness, breathlessness, or fainting. The BHF notes these conditions are particularly deadly in young people, and that about 12 young lives under 35 are lost each week in the UK to sudden cardiac events.
Expert perspective and caution
The project shows promise but requires rigorous validation. Experts warn about:
- False positives: unnecessary worry and testing.
- False negatives: missed cases that keep patients at risk.
- Data security & privacy: continuous recordings create sensitive datasets that must be protected.
- Regulatory proof: devices must demonstrate improved outcomes and safety before routine use.
Professor James Leiper of the BHF said, “This innovative research will leverage the power of AI to help clinicians unmask these hidden conditions.” He emphasized that advances must be tested carefully and used alongside clinical judgement.
Where the research stands now
- AI training dataset: more than 1,000 ECG recordings combining patients with inherited disorders and healthy controls.
- Pilot study: ~200 participants to wear the shirt up to three months at Hammersmith Hospital.
- Funding: £340,000+ from the British Heart Foundation, with NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre support.
- Estimated timeline: about five years to clinical use, pending trials and regulatory review.
Implications for the United States
For rural, moderate-conservative U.S. communities, important considerations include:
- Access and early detection: Extended home monitoring can help primary care detect inherited rhythm problems without frequent travel to specialists.
- Practicality: A washable T-shirt worn during daily activities could boost adherence compared with adhesive-electrode systems.
- Costs and coverage: Payers, Medicare, and rural hospitals will need evidence of cost-effectiveness to support adoption.
- Regulatory pathway: FDA clearance would be required for U.S. use, likely after additional testing beyond UK trials.
- Data privacy and trust: Clear standards for storage, access, and clinician review of AI findings are crucial to build acceptance.
- Local care networks: If validated, the shirt could integrate with telemedicine and rural health networks to reduce patient travel and support local management.
Sources and further reading
- Imperial College London: AI-assisted smart T-shirt being developed to improve detection of inherited heart rhythm disorders
- Imperial College London news: AI T-shirt could improve heart monitoring
- British Heart Foundation news: Smart T-shirt could reveal heart conditions in danger of being missed
- Medical Xpress: Smart shirt could reveal heart conditions
- Fox News: AI T-shirt could detect hidden heart risks
Researchers say the next steps — enrolling volunteers, collecting long-term data and proving clinical benefit — will determine whether a device you pull from your dresser can change how doctors detect and treat inherited heart rhythm disorders in everyday life.
