Banner Health Debuts AI 3D Vascular Modeling Device, With David Rizik, MD, and Michael Morris, MD

At the inaugural Scottsdale Interventional Forum (SCI) in Phoenix, Arizona, on February 11, 2026, cardiologists from Banner Health presented a live demonstration of the Heartflow PCI Navigator, an AI-driven technology designed to analyze CT scan data and generate patient-specific 3D models to optimize stent placement.1,2

The Heartflow PCI Navigator was first debuted at the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) conference, which ran from October 25-28, 2025, in San Francisco, California. Prior to stenting procedures, patients may undergo a CT scan in addition to a diagnostic angiogram. The CT data is then fed into an AI-driven technology, which creates 3D models of the patient’s anatomy, plaque composition, and lesion-specific physiology. This allows clinicians to effectively plan out procedures with all relevant data before patients enter the catheterization lab.1

“For physicians, for interventional cardiologists, and for those who do heart and vascular procedures, this is a peek into the future,” David Rizik, MD, an interventional cardiologist at Banner University Health and co-leader of the session, told HCPLive in an exclusive interview. “It’s amazing that we are now developing a tool that gives us AI-generated guidance for treating blocked coronary arteries, and we receive that guidance before we ever start the procedure to open a blocked artery.”

In addition to the Heartflow PCI Navigator, Banner Health incorporated an intravascular lithotripsy device, which delivers controlled shockwaves into blood vessel walls. This, in turn, breaks down calcium deposits before stent placement initiation. The device functions similarly to treatments for kidney stones, utilizing sound waves to break up hardened calcium and make previously untreatable vessels accessible.1

Although the device is still very much in the preliminary stages of testing, Heartflow is actively recruiting patients to the NAVIGATE-PCI Registry, which aims to include >2500 patients across roughly 30 sites in the US. The registry will assess the PCI Navigator’s effect on physician confidence, procedural safety and efficacy, and strategy and patient outcomes compared to standard care.2

Additionally, the PLAN CALCIUM study, a retrospective cohort analysis presented at TCT 2025, showed that patients receiving CCTA within a year prior to PCI saw lower rates of a composite endpoint of all-cause mortality, heart failure, and AMI at 1 and 5 years follow-up. The trial enrolled 4936 patients receiving CCTA and 80,370 without. Of these, 9.6% of CCTA recipients exhibited the composite endpoint versus 13% of those not receiving CCTA at 1 year, and 16.1% of recipients versus 23.7% non-recipients exhibited the composite endpoint at 5 years (HR, 0.74; 95% CI, 0.66-0.83).3

“A tool like this can potentially elevate all users to operate at a very high level, giving them access to the same sort of thought process and experience that an expert user has, elevating access to expertise for all patients,” Michael Morris, MD, a diagnostic radiologist at Banner University Health and co-leader of the session, told HCPLive in an exclusive interview. “But it also allows all users to access the technology in terms of patient-specific anatomy and plaque composition to enhance the decision-making of all users and to further refine the care delivery pathway.”

Editor’s Note: Rizik reports disclosures with Abbott Vascular, Biotronik, Cordis, Trireme, and Boston Scientific. Morris reports no relevant disclosures.

References

1. Banner Health. Banner Health pioneers advanced treatment for complex coronary disease. February 11, 2026. Accessed February 12, 2026. https://www.bannerhealth.com/newsroom/press-releases/complex-coronary-disease

2. Heartflow. New Heartflow PCI Navigator to Equip Interventional Cardiologists with Pre-procedural Insights to Enable PCI Planning. October 22, 2025. Accessed February 12, 2026. https://ir.heartflow.com/news-releases/news-release-details/new-heartflow-pci-navigator-equip-interventional-cardiologists

3. Patel A, Sandoval Y, Mullen S, et al. TCT-417 coronary CT angiography and AI-enabled coronary plaque analysis to inform PCI and lesion preparation: The plan calcium study. JACC. 2025;86(17). doi:10.1016/j.jacc.2025.09.534