Chatbots talk Strabismus: Can AI become the new patient Educator?

Strabismus is a common eye condition affecting both children and adults. Effective patient education is crucial for informed decision-making, but traditional methods often lack accessibility and engagement. Chatbots powered by AI have emerged as a promising solution.

This study aims to evaluate and compare the performance of three chatbots (ChatGPT, Bard, and Copilot) and a reliable website (AAPOS) in answering real patient questions about strabismus.

Three chatbots (ChatGPT, Bard, and Copilot) were compared to a reliable website (AAPOS) using real patient questions. Metrics included accuracy (SOLO taxonomy), understandability/actionability (PEMAT), and readability (Flesch-Kincaid). We also performed a sentiment analysis to capture the emotional tone and impact of the responses.

The AAPOS achieved the highest mean SOLO score (4.14 ± 0.47), followed by Bard, Copilot, and ChatGPT. Bard scored highest on both PEMAT-U (74.8 ± 13.3) and PEMAT-A (66.2 ± 13.6) measures. Flesch-Kincaid Ease Scores revealed the AAPOS as the easiest to read (mean score: 55.8 ± 14.11), closely followed by Copilot. ChatGPT, and Bard had lower scores on readability. The sentiment analysis revealed exciting differences.

Chatbots, particularly Bard and Copilot, show promise in patient education for strabismus with strengths in understandability and actionability. However, the AAPOS website outperformed in accuracy and readability.