Artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm, pushing healthcare, pharmaceutical, and contemporary medicine to new levels.
One of the areas AI tools are poised to make a huge difference is the field of gastroenterology. For gastroenterologists managing complex inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) daily, new AI tools could transform the entire experience, using new capabilities never achieved before.
The technological breakthroughs driven by AI can transform IBD through high-definition endoscopies, electronic health records (EHR), and real-time data analysis, helping gastroenterologists diagnose and manage diseases easily.
Since IBD requires gastroenterologists to gather, analyze, and piece together a heterogeneous mix of information, ranging from imaging and blood tests to family history and patient’s reported symptoms, AI tools have proven to help with these tasks.
Three AI Tools Set to Transform IBD Care
According to experts in the IBD, three core AI technologies could shape the future of IBD care.
- Image analysis and processing AI
- Natural language processing AI
- Generative AI
Image Analysis and Processing
Image analysis and processing is one of the key areas of AI application in IBD care. AI can be used to analyze and process medical images and videos, converting essential elements of endoscopic videos and images into mathematical features.
This helps to provide quick, granular, and accurate results without the need for interobservers and intraobservers, which could result in variation due to human error.
Natural Language Processing
Natural language processing (NLP) AI allows systems to go through digital medical information, including clinical notes, extract, interpret, and quantify it in a fraction of the time needed by human professionals. In IBD care, AI can help automate EMR chart reviews, which are usually time-consuming for clinicians since they have to gather and read all critical information for effective management of the illness.
Generative AI
Chatbots have been around for a while. If you are familiar with Open AI’s ChatGPT platform, you understand its benefits in nearly all sectors. In IBD care, these technologies can be used to educate patients. Just like ChatGPT, chatbots can used to answer patients’ pre-colonoscopy questions.
As AI technology advances, gastroenterologists should be prepared to integrate these technologies into clinical practice.
