Stroke patients in England are receiving life-saving treatment more than an hour earlier thanks to a revolutionary AI-powered fast-track tool, according to a major study.
The analysis shows that around 15,000 patients have directly benefitted from having their scans reviewed by the technology, which is now deployed across over 70 NHS hospitals. The AI platform, Brainomix 360 Stroke, rapidly analyses CT scans to detect deadly clots within minutes, enabling doctors to make faster decisions and transfer patients to specialist stroke centres sooner.
This speed is critical: every 20-minute delay in thrombectomy—a minimally invasive clot-removal procedure—reduces the chance of full recovery by around 1%. By accelerating diagnosis and transfer, the AI tool has doubled thrombectomy rates at participating hospitals (from 2.3% to 4.6%), compared to smaller increases at non-participating sites (1.6% to 2.6%).
Thrombectomy is one of the most effective treatments for major strokes, but it is highly time sensitive. Without rapid scan interpretation and swift transfer, many patients arrive too late to benefit. The AI tool is particularly valuable in hospitals without on-site neuroradiology expertise, where the study found the biggest improvements in treatment rates and transfer times.
Dr David Hargroves, Co-author of the study and NHS National Clinical Director for Stroke, said:
“This landmark study confirms what we have already been seeing in daily practice: that stroke AI imaging is helping us deliver faster decision-making and better care for our patients.
“This technology supports clinicians to make rapid treatment decisions, which means more patients can receive life- and disability-saving treatments in time – giving them a better chance of returning to independent living.
“This publication provides robust, real-world evidence of the impact of AI in stroke care and shows why the NHS moved quickly to roll this technology out nationwide.”
Stroke remains one of the leading causes of death and disability in England, with around 80,000 cases annually. Every minute without treatment destroys millions of brain cells, making early intervention vital. The NHS rollout of AI decision-support across all regularly admitting stroke services could help thousands more patients regain independence after a major stroke.
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