Integrating generative artificial intelligence into orthopaedics: A review of opportunities, challenges and future directions

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is a powerful class of machine learning that moves beyond simply analysing data to actually creating new and original content, such as medical images or clinical text. The use of generative AI is varied in orthopaedic surgery. Generative AI moves us from one-size-fits-all surgical planning to highly personalised surgical blueprints for each patient's unique anatomy and condition. While generative AI in surgery is new, it can provide real-time intelligent help to a surgeon's skill and decision-making. Most practitioners see the use of AI as a tool to improve diagnosis and treatment, with some expressing their concern that it will conversely worsen diagnosis and treatment. With its use and potential, the use of generative AI currently should be supervised and validated, as it has been shown that sometimes the generated content does not reference to any actual source. Policies and economic values are also detrimental to the integration of AI technologies in clinical orthopaedics. Ethical issues, practitioners view and perspective, and the high overall cost of AI technology use, are among the barriers that may emerge. This comprehensive review addresses the opportunities, challenges, and future direction of integrating generative AI in orthopaedic surgery.