Who hasn’t used ChatGPT? The popular large language model (LLM) was the fastest adopted app in the history of the internetand hundreds of millions of people around the world use it every day, along with AI models from competitors like Microsoft, Google, and Anthropic.
But what do people actually use these LLMs for? A question of particular concern to us at Better2Know is whether people are using these LLMs to self-diagnose STDs.
It’s a fascinating subject. Read on to learn more.
If you’re concerned about your sexual health, get a complete picture of it with Better2Know’s Platinum Screen.
What are STDs?
If you’re reading this blog, you probably know what an STD is. But for the uninitiated, here’s a quick recap.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are infections you get from sex: most commonly from unprotected vaginal, anal and oral sex. You may have heard of the most well-known culprits such as Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, HIV, Herpesand Syphilis. But there are many other, lesser known STDs such as Mycoplasma, Trichomonas, Ureaplasmaand Hepatitis Ball of these can cause serious harm to your health if left untreated.
You don’t have to have full intercourse to get an STD, although it is the most common way of transmission. STDs like HPV and Herpes can be transmitted through simple skin-to-skin contact during foreplay and kissing, respectively.
Bloodborne viruses such as hepatitis B and HIV can also be transmitted through blood-to-blood contact, such as sharing needles and tattooing through unsterile tattooing equipment.
Getting an STD doesn’t have to be overly serious. After all, most STDs can be treated with medication, and others can be managed with the right treatment and care. But getting an STD and leaving it untreated is where the problems begin.
Untreated sexually transmitted diseases can lead to a range of negative health outcomes, including pelvic inflammatory disease, fertility complications, complications during childbirth, and damage to important organ systems such as the immune system, nerves, liver, eyes, brain and bones.
What is AI?
The term “artificial intelligence” has become a bit vague in recent years. When most people think of artificial intelligence, they think of things like; of the Terminator Skynet or 2001: A Space Odyssey‘s HAL 9000: mechanical or digital consciousnesses that dominate humanity through their ability to think and act faster, better and more thoroughly than we can.
However, the things we call “artificial intelligence” these days, such as apps like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude, they are probably not “smart” at all.. Rather, they are sophisticated software programs that can generate text, images, code, and video by training themselves on vast amounts of data. They use probability and statistics to generate the most likely outcomes based on publicly available data and the prompts they are given.
People use AI for all kinds of thingssuch as sourcing recipes, creating online content and, business and life advice.
But many people are also using AI for something else very important: search.
Instead of turning to traditional search engines for their search queries, many people are using artificial intelligence to generate answers to simple questions.
When you enter a question into your LLM medium, it will output an answer, and that answer is pulled from publicly available content, most often from the Internet.
So, for our purposes, what can an app like ChatGPT tell someone looking for information about STDs?
The BMJ study
This question was partially answered by a recently published study at British Medical Journal. The researchers chose to study how adolescents with limited access to formal health care would use ChatGPT to address their sexual health concerns and other common STI-related questions.
They used ChatGPT (GPT 3.5) to answer questions in several categories:
- General risk factors for STDs
- Access to STI care and diagnosis
- STD management and post-exposure prophylaxis
All responses were reviewed according to the 2021 CDC STI treatment guidelines.
The results of this study were interesting. According to the researchers, ChatGPT’s responses were quite concise and accurate in content. The app also recommended safe sex practices and HPV vaccination as STD prevention measures.
However, there were problems with other responses the app gave:
“[ChatGPT] failed to recommend HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis. When a person expressed a symptom that could potentially represent an STD (eg, dyspareunia), ChatGPT appropriately provided reassurance that other possibilities existed, but supported testing. Regarding treatment, ChatGPT consistently communicated the importance of partner testing and follow-up, but sometimes failed to emphasize the importance of testing for other STIs. Overall, the advice given was not tailored to the individual’s specific circumstances.“
So, what can we learn from this study?
What are the benefits of using AI to learn about STIs?
There are definite benefits to using an LLM to learn more about STIs and sexual health.
Quick and comprehensive answers
LLMs have access to all the information on the Internet and can pull answers from a wide range of content and present that content to the user in response to a query. Some LLMs may also provide sources for their answers so users can read further, such as in Microsoft’s Copilot.
Ease of use and access
Most well-known LLMs are free to access and easy to use. Anyone with a computer, smartphone and internet connection can access and use many LLMs. Giving more people access to more information is certainly a good thing. Most LLMs also present information in a clear and concise manner that most people can understand.
What are the disadvantages of using AI to diagnose STDs?
While providing better access to more information is vital for many people, using an LLM to learn about your sexual health concerns can be problematic.
Incorrect and outdated information
Most LLMs cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information they present, which can cause serious problems. They may misrepresent, supply incorrect information, or simply misunderstand the intent behind the prompt.
Most LLMs encourage users to verify important information in order to make fully informed choices about any information presented to them.
They are also only trained on certain information. They do not have access to copyrighted information, and most cannot present information that was publicly available before 2022.
General information
So much of health is personal. When a doctor diagnoses someone, it is usually after asking many questions about the patient’s life and health. The answers to these questions will determine how and why to treat a patient who comes to see them.
While LLMs can present users with vast amounts of information and present it in a digestible manner, they cannot tailor their responses to individual situations.
That’s why, for most healthcare-related questions, most LLMs will encourage users to seek medical diagnoses, tests, and treatment.
Final thoughts
The study concluded that:
“ChatGPT can provide useful information about sexually transmitted diseases, but the advice lacks specificity and requires a human doctor to improve. Its ubiquity may make it a useful adjunct in sexual health clinics to improve knowledge and access to care.”
While this is just one study and more research needs to be done to understand how people will use LLMs to guide sexual health decisions, the input of a medical professional, along with rigorous testing, will always be necessary.
If you’re concerned about your sexual health, you can get tested for STDs with Better2Know today. Find a sexual health clinic near you by clicking the button below.
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