Computational approaches for detection of cardiac rhythm abnormalities: Are we there yet?

The analysis of an electrocardiogram (ECG) is able to provide vital information on the electrical activity of the heart and is crucial for the accurate diagnosis of cardiac arrhythmias. Due to the nature of some arrhythmias, this might be a time-consuming and difficult to accomplish process. The advent of novel machine learning technologies in this field has a potential to revolutionise the use of the ECG. In this review, we outline key advances in ECG analysis for atrial, ventricular and complex multiform arrhythmias, as well as discuss the current limitations of the technology and the barriers that must be overcome before clinical integration is feasible.