Harnessing AI and Data Science in Congenital Heart Disease

Workshop 9th July 2025

Venue: Wills Memorial Building 3.32, BS8 1RJ ///rich.bossy.square

Congenital heart disease (CHD) comprises a range of heart conditions affecting almost 1 in 100 babies born in the UK. CHD is an exceptionally complicated condition involving developmental biology, genetic and environmental factors, anatomical complexity, and hemodynamics. Its early detection is crucial for reducing the risk of mortality and morbidity, but it presents multiple challenges. Data Science and Artificial Intelligence approaches are revolutionising some areas of medical research and clinical practice, with some potential and promising applications in the early diagnostics and decision support for CHD. This workshop will explore how Data Science and AI can help to inform early detection, more accurate diagnosis, and personalised treatment strategies.

Support for parents and carers

HDRN is proud of fostering an inclusive community and wants to make sure our events are accessible to people with a range of different circumstances and needs. If you are a parent or carer affiliated to the University of Bristol, and would like to attend one of our workshops out of your normal working hours, we would be happy to support you.

Read more about it and register your interest here: Parents and carers support form

In collaboration with:
LEAP EBI BRH for Children NHS Bristol and Weston

Agenda

Chairs:
Serban Stoica, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust
Associate Professor in Congenital Cardiac Surgery, Bristol Medical School
Miquel Perello-Nieto, Senior Research Associate, School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology
Pau Erola, Research Software Engineer, Jean Golding Institute

9:30	Arrival – self-service tea and coffee
10:00	Welcome Leon Danon, Associate Professor in Data Analytics & Director of the Jean Golding Institute Patrick Kehoe, Gestetner Professor of Translational Dementia Research & Director of Elizabeth Blackwell Institute
10:10	Challenges in Congenital Heart Disease Research Serban Stoica, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust;Associate Professor in Congenital Cardiac Surgery, Bristol Medical School
	Session 1, chair Serban Stoica
10:20	Maria Pufulete, Associate Professor in Applied Health Methodology From embryonic idea to funded projects: challenges and opportunities in cardiovascular science
10:35	Giovanni Biglino, Associate Professor in Bioengineering Statistical shape modelling in CHD
10:50	Dan Dorobantu, Clinical Cardiology Fellow, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust Exercise echo in CHD: complex questions and analytics
11:05	Coffee break Session 2, chair Pau Erola
11:25	Sarah Blake, Cardiology Registrar in Adult Congenital Heart Disease, Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals Deploying AI in the NHS
11:40	Jack Gibb, Cardiology Registrar, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust Omics in CHD: a journey of discovery
11:55	Colin McMahon, Consultant in Cardiology, Children’s Health Ireland at Crumlin; Professor in Paediatric Cardiology, University College Dublin CHD: unique complexities and high stakes in decision making
12:05	Discussion activity
12:30	Networking Lunch Session 3, chair Miquel Perello-Nieto
1:30	James Pope, Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology Pervasive Health Monitoring: An Overview
1:45	Zhaozhen Xu, Senior Research Associate in Machine Learning, Bristol Medical School M-PreSS: A Model Pre-training Approach for Study Screening in Systematic Reviews
2:00	Dan Lawson, Associate Professor in Data Science, School of Mathematics Genetic associations, population stratification, towards rare variant attribution
2:15	Abigail Fraser, Professor of Epidemiology, Bristol Medical School Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)
2:30	Coffee break Session 4, chairs Serban & Pau
2:50	Working group discussions
3:25	Recap & closing remarks