The ESC Digital Summit, Europe’s first-ever cardiac conference centered around digital health, is slated for Oct. 5 and 6 at the Creative Hub in Tallinn, Estonia, the European Society of Cardiology announced.
According to a release from the ESC, the event will bring patient groups, healthcare professionals, technology developers, policymakers and regulators together in a deep-dive into artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and all things digital CVD.
“Cardiovascular medicine is on the cutting edge of the digital health field because there are so many different things to measure,” Martin Cowie, chair of the ESC’s Digital Health Committee, said in the release. “Technology is getting better and better at measuring ECGs, blood pressure, blood sugar and so on. People are monitoring themselves and using algorithms or AI to help them make the best choices.”
One congress debate will center around whether AI could “replace” human intelligence—something Cowie said will be fundamental to the meeting.
“Central to the conference is stripping away the hype without being cynical,” he said. “Healthcare professionals will see the possibilities while developers will gain insights into regulatory requirements and clinicians’ need for good evidence before backing a new approach.”
The conference will also address reimbursement and regulation in the digital age, as well as wearables and mobile apps in precision medicine. We need to consider a more nuanced approach to wearables and apps, Cowie said, or constant monitoring could lead to patient anxiety and be more trouble than it’s worth. Cybersecurity will be another hot topic.
The ESC said it chose Tallinn for the meeting because Estonia is a “leader on interoperability.” The Estonian prime minister is slated to attend the conference’s opening session.
After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.