When Courtney’s son, Alex, started showing signs of distress during the COVID-19 lockdown, she initially thought it was just typical childhood growing pains. However, what began with a simple bounce house purchase and a child’s complaints of pain soon spiraled into a three-year medical odyssey involving 17 doctors. Frustrated and desperate for answers to Alex’s escalating pain and a growing list of perplexing symptoms, Courtney turned to an unlikely source for help: ChatGPT. This is the story of how an AI platform offered a glimmer of hope in a long and arduous diagnostic journey, highlighting both the exciting potential and the crucial limitations of using Chat Gpt For Medical Diagnosis.
Alex’s ordeal began subtly. His nanny first noticed his daily need for pain relief medication, Motrin, to manage what seemed like inexplicable meltdowns. Then came the chewing – an unusual habit that led Courtney to the dentist, kicking off a relentless search for the root cause of Alex’s suffering. For years, specialists remained baffled, each addressing symptoms within their narrow expertise without piecing together the larger puzzle of Alex’s condition.
Chat GPT helped diagnosis her son
Image alt text: A mother looks at her phone, which displays a chat interface, suggesting the use of AI tools like ChatGPT in assisting with challenging medical diagnoses.
“We saw so many doctors. We ended up in the ER at one point. I kept pushing,” Courtney recounts. Driven by a mother’s intuition and armed with medical reports, including MRI results, Courtney decided to leverage the power of artificial intelligence. She created a ChatGPT account and meticulously input Alex’s symptoms and medical history into the AI platform. Exhausted but determined, she spent a night “going through all these things” on her computer, hoping for a breakthrough.
To her astonishment, ChatGPT suggested tethered cord syndrome. “It made a lot of sense,” Courtney remembers, a turning point in their long quest for answers.
The Labyrinth of Symptoms: Pain, Teeth Grinding, and a Dragging Leg
The initial symptoms were perplexing. Alex’s chewing behavior led to a dental visit, initially suspected to be related to teething or cavities. “Our sweet personality — for the most part — (child) is dissolving into this tantrum-ing crazy person that didn’t exist the rest of the time,” Courtney described the concerning personality changes accompanying the physical symptoms.
While the dentist ruled out dental issues, they suspected teeth grinding and suggested an orthodontist specializing in airway obstruction. The orthodontist diagnosed a palate too small for Alex’s mouth, contributing to nighttime breathing difficulties and potentially explaining his exhaustion and moodiness. A palate expander was fitted, offering temporary relief.
“Everything was better for a little bit,” Courtney said, but the improvement was short-lived. Alex’s growth stalled, prompting a pediatrician visit. While the pediatrician initially attributed it to pandemic-related stress, Courtney remained unconvinced. A subsequent check-up revealed minimal growth, leading to a referral for physical therapy due to observed imbalances. “He would lead with his right foot and just bring his left foot along for the ride,” Courtney noticed, describing his uneven gait.
Before physical therapy could begin, severe headaches emerged, leading to a neurologist who diagnosed migraines. Exhaustion persisted, prompting a visit to an ENT specialist to investigate potential sleep issues related to sinuses or airway. Despite numerous specialists, a cohesive diagnosis remained elusive. Courtney felt specialists were addressing isolated symptoms, not the underlying condition. “Nobody’s willing to solve for the greater problem,” she lamented.
A physical therapist then raised the possibility of Chiari malformation, a congenital brain condition. Courtney researched extensively and consulted more doctors – a new pediatrician, pediatric internist, adult internist, and musculoskeletal doctor – yet remained in the dark. After 17 medical professionals over three years, Alex was still without a diagnosis. Driven by desperation, Courtney turned to ChatGPT, hoping the AI could connect the dots where human doctors had not.
ChatGPT Steps In: Unlocking the Diagnostic Puzzle
Exhausted and frustrated, Courtney approached ChatGPT with a methodical strategy. “I went line by line of everything that was in his (MRI notes) and plugged it into ChatGPT,” she explained. She included subtle yet significant details, such as Alex’s inability to sit “crisscross applesauce,” recognizing it as a potential indicator of a structural issue.
ChatGPT’s suggestion of tethered cord syndrome resonated deeply with Courtney. She joined a Facebook support group for families affected by the condition, and their shared experiences mirrored Alex’s symptoms. Armed with this newfound lead, Courtney consulted a new neurosurgeon, specifically mentioning her suspicion of tethered cord syndrome. Reviewing Alex’s MRI, the neurosurgeon immediately identified the problem. “She said point blank, ‘Here’s occulta spina bifida, and here’s where the spine is tethered,” Courtney recalled, finally receiving a definitive diagnosis.
Tethered cord syndrome, often linked to spina bifida, occurs when spinal cord tissue attachments restrict spinal cord movement, causing abnormal stretching. Spina bifida, a birth defect involving incomplete spinal cord development, has different forms. Alex’s case was spina bifida occulta, a “hidden” form without a visible opening.
Dr. Holly Gilmer, the pediatric neurosurgeon who treated Alex at the Michigan Head & Spine Institute, explained, “the spinal cord is stuck to something… [and] the abnormality can’t elongate … and it pulls.” While spina bifida is often detected at birth, spina bifida occulta can be missed, relying on symptom-based diagnosis later in childhood. Symptoms can include leg dragging, pain, bladder issues, constipation, scoliosis, foot abnormalities, and developmental delays. Dr. Gilmer emphasizes the diagnostic challenge in young children who cannot articulate their symptoms, and the normalization of chronic discomfort by some patients and parents.
For Courtney, the diagnosis triggered “every emotion in the book – relief, validated, excitement for his future.” The arduous journey had finally yielded answers, thanks in part to the unexpected assistance of AI.
The Role of ChatGPT in Medicine: A Powerful Tool, Not a Replacement
ChatGPT is an advanced AI program that generates responses based on user input, drawing from vast amounts of text data on the internet. It functions by “predicting the next word” in a sequence, according to Andrew Beam, Ph.D., an epidemiology professor at Harvard specializing in machine learning and medicine. When posed with a medical query like “I have fever, chills, and body aches,” ChatGPT analyzes patterns from its training data to suggest possible diagnoses, such as “influenza.”
Dr. Beam describes ChatGPT as a “super high-powered medical search engine,” potentially surpassing conventional symptom checkers and even general Google searches in diagnostic assistance. Its strength lies in processing complex, multi-symptom scenarios, potentially identifying conditions that might be overlooked in fragmented specialist consultations. For patients on a “diagnostic odyssey,” ChatGPT can serve as a valuable “partner,” offering a broader perspective unconstrained by human physicians’ potential blind spots.
However, experts caution against overreliance on AI for medical diagnosis. Dr. Beam highlights the phenomenon of “hallucination,” where ChatGPT may fabricate information when unable to find a definitive answer. In medical contexts, this could lead to invented studies or inaccurate information, posing risks to patient care.
Dr. Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, president of the American Medical Association (AMA), emphasizes a balanced perspective. The AMA supports “high-quality, clinically validated AI” deployed responsibly and ethically, prioritizing patient safety. While acknowledging AI’s promise in easing administrative burdens and potentially aiding direct patient care, Dr. Ehrenfeld stresses that current AI tools like ChatGPT “have known issues and are not error free.” He warns against the risks of “AI-generated fabrications, errors, or inaccuracies” and the importance of “clinical evidence of the safety and efficacy of new AI-enabled healthcare applications,” mirroring the rigorous standards applied to new medications.
From Diagnosis to Recovery: Alex’s Journey Forward
Despite his medical challenges, Alex is described as a “happy go lucky” child who enjoys playing and adapting to limitations. Though forced to give up baseball and hockey due to pain, he found a way to stay involved in sports by becoming a coach from the sidelines, showcasing his intelligence and resilience.
Following his diagnosis, Alex underwent surgery to address his tethered cord syndrome. Dr. Gilmer explained the procedure involves detaching the spinal cord from its point of restriction, releasing tension. Alex is currently in recovery, embarking on a path toward improved health and well-being.
Courtney’s decision to share their story underscores the critical role of patient advocacy in navigating complex medical systems. “There’s nobody that connects the dots for you,” she emphasizes. “You have to be your kid’s advocate.” Alex’s story serves as a powerful reminder of the potential of AI as a supplementary tool in medical diagnosis, while simultaneously highlighting the indispensable role of human expertise, critical evaluation, and proactive patient advocacy in achieving positive health outcomes.
This story was updated to include a statement from the American Medical Association.
