Can Generative Artificial Intelligence Enhance Health Literacy About Lateral Epicondylitis?

Area of Science:

• Medical Writing
• Health Literacy
• Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare

Background:

• Poor health literacy is linked to negative health outcomes.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommend patient educational materials (PEMs) be at an eighth-grade reading level or lower.
• Effective patient education is crucial for managing conditions like lateral epicondylitis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the capability of generative artificial intelligence (AI) to edit orthopaedic patient educational materials (PEMs).
• To determine if AI can rewrite PEMs to meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) readability guidelines.
• To assess the impact of AI editing on the reading level and word count of PEMs regarding lateral epicondylitis.

Main Methods:

• Patient educational materials (PEMs) on lateral epicondylitis were collected from top-ranked orthopaedic institutions.
• ChatGPT (version 4.0) was utilized to rewrite the PEMs to comply with CDC and NIH guidelines.
• Readability scores of original and AI-edited PEMs were compared using paired t-tests.

Main Results:

• AI editing resulted in a significant reduction in the reading grade level of PEMs by 3.70 (p<0.001).
• The word count of the PEMs was also significantly reduced by an average of 346.72 words (p<0.001).
• The rewritten materials met the recommended readability standards for patient education.

Conclusions:

• Generative AI demonstrates a strong ability to revise patient educational materials (PEMs) to align with CDC and NIH health literacy recommendations.
• Healthcare providers, including hospital administrators and orthopaedic surgeons, can leverage AI tools to enhance the clarity and accessibility of patient information.
• Utilizing AI for editing PEMs offers a promising strategy to improve patient understanding and engagement with their health conditions.