4 min readJul 4, 2026 08:36 AM IST People with stronger, denser chest and back muscles may be significantly less likely to suffer a heart attack or die prematurely, according to a new study that used artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse routine heart scans. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh found that the quality of skeletal muscles, not their size, was closely linked to long-term cardiovascular health. The findings, published in the journal Radiology, suggest that muscle composition could become a new marker for identifying people at higher risk of heart disease. The research analysed chest scans from 1,722 patients, most of whom were in their 50s and had undergone coronary CT angiography after experiencing chest pain. Using AI, researchers measured muscles, fat, bones and organs in the upper body, focusing particularly on muscles in the chest and back. Muscle quality matters more than muscle size Instead of measuring muscle mass alone, the researchers examined skeletal muscle attenuation, which reflects muscle density. Denser muscle appears brighter on CT scans because it absorbs more X-Rays and …