Home › Trials › NCT06555757
Clinical trial Recruiting at 1 site Observational Ages 18 and up

Using AI to detect early heart failure worsening from voice, cough and breathing sounds

Official title: Utilising AI Analysis of Sounds To prEdict heaRt failurE decOmpensation

Run by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · NCT06555757 · Data updated 2026-11-12

This will test whether a smartphone app that uses AI to analyse voice, cough and breathing sounds can spot early signs of worsening in adults with chronic NYHA class 3–4 heart failure.

More Heart Failure trials

Quick facts

Study typeObservational
Ages18 Years and up
SexAll
Enrollment250 (estimated)
SponsorCambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Academic / other
Locations1 site (Cambridge, Cambridgeshire)
StatusRecruiting
StartedSeptember 18, 2024
Main results expectedAugust 15, 2027
Study endsAugust 15, 2027
Registry record updatedMay 12, 2026
Trial IDNCT06555757 on ClinicalTrials.gov

Is this trial a fit for you?

Likely a good fit

Adults (age ≥18) with chronic stable heart failure classified as NYHA class 3 or 4 who can give informed consent and use a smartphone (or accept a loaned device) are ideal candidates.

Probably not a fit

Patients with active pneumonia, significant chronic pulmonary disease (eg, severe asthma, COPD, interstitial lung disease), current pulmonary embolus, those requiring continuous high‑flow oxygen, or those unable to provide consent or use a smartphone are unlikely to benefit from this approach.

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

Researchers will collect smartphone recordings of participants' voice, coughs and breathing alongside routine clinical data such as height, weight, BMI, medical history, physical exam findings, resting vital signs and blood samples. An AI algorithm will analyse the sound recordings to identify patterns associated with pulmonary congestion and impending acute decompensated heart failure. Participants will attend Cambridge University Hospitals for baseline assessments and may provide additional recordings remotely via a mobile app or a loaned smartphone. The approach aims to find subtle, non-invasive signals that precede clinical worsening and could be monitored outside the hospital.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this could give patients and clinicians an early, non-invasive warning of fluid buildup in the lungs and help prevent emergency hospital admissions.

How similar studies have gone: Early pilot studies and AI-based voice/lung-sound research show promise, but this application in heart failure requires larger-scale validation and is not yet proven.

Who can join: the full rules

Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria 
Inclusion Criteria:

* Male or Female, aged 18 years or above.
* Diagnosed with chronic stable heart failure NYHA Class 3 or 4 (either during most recent cardiology/heart failure clinic visit, or ADHF during recent/current hospitalization).
* Participant is willing and able to give informed consent for participation in the study.
* Participant has a smartphone device and can download a purposely designed mobile application on their phone (with guidance from the study investigators) or is willing to have sound recordings via a smartphone device loaned for the purpose of the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Unable to provide consent
* Patients requiring continuous oxygen therapy at flow rates that cannot be provided through nasal cannula
* Patients with currently known pneumonia
* Patients with known significant pulmonary disease including asthma, COPD, pulmonary fibrosis/interstitial lung disease, pulmonary hemorrhage.
* Patients with current Pulmonary embolus
* Patients with other intercurrent acute symptomatic illness (e.g., viral/bacterial infection) at time of recording
* Patients requiring continuous oxygen therapy at flow rates that cannot be provided through nasal cannula
* Patients with tracheostomy or who have undergone a surgical procedure to the head/neck/larynx which would affect the normal functioning of the vocal cords.
* Aphasic
* Patients excluded at PI discretion

Where it's running

  • Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
    Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom     Recruiting

Study contacts

  • Principal investigator: Joseph Cheriyan — Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
  • Study coordinator: Erdem Demir
  • Email: erdem.demir1@nhs.net
  • Phone: +44 1223 256621

Similar studies

Other studies for the same condition or treatment. Recruiting studies are listed first.

How to take part

  1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
  2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
  3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.
View on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗ Find more trials like this →
Browse more
Heart Failure 1020Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 26
Last reviewed 2026-11-14 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.