Can You Trust Medical Information from AI?

In the past, information about a hand or wrist condition was only available from your doctor. Now, there are hospital and clinic sites, websites like WebMD, and artificial intelligence (AI), all available to the general public, mostly for free. Hand surgeon Thomas R. Boyce, MD investigated all of the options for obtaining medical information related to the hand and upper extremity. Here are his recommendations:

Hand Surgeon

Advantages:

• The information given about a condition is most often based on your history, which may include symptoms, personal observations, the timing of symptoms, what makes symptoms better or worse, the location of symptoms, your occupation, and your general health.
• A physical exam will be performed, which can be tailored to help determine the cause of symptoms.
• The doctor can order special tests (e.g., x-rays, CT scans, ultrasound exams, blood tests and others) to support a diagnosis. These tests can determine if one or more conditions are causing symptoms.
• A formal diagnosis will be made.
• A personalized treatment plan will be created by your doctor.

This is the recommended option for obtaining medical information. The information you will receive is based on highly specialized medical and surgical training and experience.

HandCare.org

HandCare is a patient website from the American Society for Surgery of the Hand that provides general information about conditions, injuries, and procedures of the hand and upper extremity.
 
Advantages:

• The website is free and available 24/7 to those who can access the internet.
• The topics covered are written by highly trained hand surgeons.
• There is an option to find board certified hand surgeons in your city or state.

Disadvantages:

• The topics on HandCare.org are comprehensive but do not include all of the conditions that may affect the upper limb.
• Most topics deal with only one subject and cannot address co-existing problems that a hand surgeon can identify.

Hospitals/Clinics and Other Medical Websites

Advantages:

• The websites are free and available 24/7 to those who can access the internet.
• The information is provided by medically trained personnel, so appropriateness and reliability are high.
• The sites cover a wide range of conditions.

Disadvantages:

• The information cannot consider your personal health or answer complex questions about your situation.
• The sites are not specific to the hand and upper extremity.

Artificial Intelligence

In the last two years there have been rapid improvements in AI, which can answer long-form questions like “Why are my hands numb?” However, the tools are still experimental.
 
Advantages:

• The websites are free and available 24/7 to those who can access the internet.
• You can request a certain reading level to match your comprehension.

Disadvantages:

• The answer/solutions are generated from billions of pieces of data, some of which may be incorrect. Misinformation related to medical conditions can be dangerous.
• The answers to medical questions do not consider your personal health and cannot address complex issues, including how a treatment may affect your job and lifestyle or how co-existing conditions may be affecting you.
• Most AI tools cannot access the most reliable medical information from sources like medical journals, which require a subscription.
• Some AI tools do not reveal the sources of their information.
• The answers may vary depending on how the question is worded.

Obtaining medical information from AI is not recommended.

Wikipedia and Other Online Encyclopedias

Advantages:

• The websites are usually free and available 24/7 to those who can access the internet.
• The sites cover a wide range of conditions.

Disadvantages:

• The information may be edited by non-medical persons.
• The medical information has been found to lack high reliability/accuracy.
• The information cannot consider your personal health or answer complex questions about your situation.