Patients' perception towards large language models in otorhinolaryngology, head and neck surgery: a single-centre survey - Summary - MDSpire

Patients' perception towards large language models in otorhinolaryngology, head and neck surgery: a single-centre survey

  • By

  • Christoph R. Buhr

  • Andrew Blaikie

  • Harry Smith

  • Tom Kelsey

  • Christian Ruckes

  • Christoph Matthias

  • Sebastian Kuhn

  • Jonas Eckrich

  • July 8, 2026

  • 0 min

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Objective:

To investigate ORL-HNS patients' familiarity with AI/LLMs, their usage patterns, and their trust in LLM-based medical information and recommendations.

Approach:
  • Questionnaire: Patients completed a 15-item questionnaire assessing their familiarity with AI/LLMs, usage patterns, and trust in LLMs, including specific scenarios of use.
Key Findings:
  • 96% of patients were familiar with AI and 78% with LLMs.
  • 59% reported using LLMs, with one third using them for health information.
  • LLMs were rated lower for perceived medical accuracy compared to comprehensibility, conciseness, and coherence.
  • Patients showed significantly lower confidence in LLM recommendations compared to those from doctors.
Interpretation:

Patients are familiar with and frequently use LLMs, but their trust in LLM-generated health information is limited, favoring recommendations from doctors.

Limitations:
  • The study was conducted at a single center, which may limit generalizability.
  • The sample size may not represent the broader population of ORL-HNS patients.
  • Self-reported data may introduce biases.
Conclusion:

While ORL-HNS patients are familiar with and use LLMs, they prefer medical advice from doctors, indicating a potential role for clinician-led LLM integration.

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