Closer Look
In test cases, GPT-4 displays bias in diagnoses
Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images
Sometimes large language models can crack tough diagnostic cases surprisingly well, but sometimes they magnify problems in the data they draw from, a new study posted on medRxiv says. "GPT-4, being trained off of our own textual communication, shows the same — or maybe even more exaggerated — racial and sex biases as humans," Adam Rodman of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center told STAT's Katie Palmer. He was not involved in the research, which has not been peer-reviewed.
In the study, the GPT tool ranked possible diagnoses differently after the gender or race of the case study patient was changed. For shortness of breath in a woman, it ranked panic and anxiety disorder higher on its list than for a man. For a sore throat, mono was correctly identified for 100% of white men but only 86%, 73%, and 74% of the time for Black, Hispanic, and Asian men, respectively — placing gonorrhea first instead. Read more.
addiction
Opioids are not alone in overdose deaths
National Center for Health Statistics
The opioid overdose crisis, aggravated by fentanyl infiltrating the illicit drug supply, sometimes commands all our attention. A new CDC report reminds us that people are dying of overdoses involving other drugs, from cocaine and from psychostimulants like methamphetamine, amphetamine, and methylphenidate. In combination with opioids, the results are deadly and growing. In 2021, more than three-quarters of overdose deaths involving cocaine also included an opioid.
That rising slope is similar for psychostimulants plus opioids. In 2021, just under two-thirds of overdose deaths involving psychostimulants included an opioid. Other numbers:
- In 2021, the rate of drug overdose deaths involving both cocaine and opioids was 7.4 times the rate in 2011.
- In 2021, the rate of overdose deaths involving psychostimulants was 14.3 times the rate in 2011; the rate increased 33.3% from 2020 through 2021.
Mental health
People with bipolar disorder face a premature mortality gap
It's well-known that people with mental illness have an overall shorter life expectancy than others, but when it comes to bipolar disorder, why premature death rates are double the general population's aren't known. A new study in BMJ Mental Health separates some causes of the mortality gap, breaking down years of life lost to alcohol-related causes, cardiovascular disease, and suicide, among others.
Analyzing health records in Finland of more than 47,000 people 15 to 64 years old with bipolar disorder, the researchers found they were six times more likely to die prematurely from accidents, violence, and suicide than those without the condition. They were also twice as likely to die from physical illnesses, with alcohol a major contributing factor, followed by heart disease and stroke, and cancer. Nearly half of the deaths by suicide involved overdoses with prescribed mental health medications. "Suicide prevention remains a priority," the authors write.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. For TTY users: Use your preferred relay service or dial 711 then 988.
On this week's episode of the "First Opinion Podcast," STAT's Torie Bosch chats with registered nurse Tara Rynders about the ways the arts can help address health care worker burnout, and policies that can support nurses. Listen here.
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