The new study involves endoscopists, who perform colonoscopies to look for precancerous growths in the bowel. These growths, known as adenomas, can be detected and removed to prevent them from becoming bowel cancer.
Advances in AI technology have led to the development of computer-assisted polyp-detection systems, which have been found to help these health workers spot more adenomas.
By analysing work conducted in Poland, the research team set out to assess whether continuous use of AI led to a dip in performance when endoscopists performed colonoscopies without the help of the technology.
To that end, the team analysed 1,442 colonoscopies conducted by experienced health workers before and after AI systems were rolled out at certain centres in 2021.
Writing in the journal Lancet Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the experts reported that the rate of polyp detection was 6% lower after the introduction of AI in standard and non-AI-assisted colonoscopies.
“To our knowledge, this is the first study to suggest a negative impact of regular AI use on the ability of healthcare professionals to complete a patient-relevant task in medicine of any kind,” said Dr Marcin Romanczyk from the Academy of Silesia in Poland, one of the study authors.
“Our results are concerning, given that the adoption of AI in medicine is rapidly spreading,” he highlighted.
“We urgently need more research into the impact of AI on health professionals’ skills across different medical fields, find out which factors may cause or contribute to problems when healthcare professionals and AI systems don’t work well together, and develop ways to fix or improve these interactions.”
In a linked editorial, Dr Omer Ahmad, consultant gastroenterologist and clinical research fellow at University College London, wrote: “These findings temper the current enthusiasm for rapid adoption of AI-based technologies, and highlight the importance of carefully considering possible unintended clinical consequences.
“The study provides the first real-world clinical evidence for the phenomenon of deskilling, potentially affecting patient-related outcomes.”