Comment on Artificial Intelligence in Trichology

Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence exhibited by computation, as opposed to natural human intelligence. Founded as an academic discipline in 1956, AI went through cycles of optimism, followed by periods of disappointment. The growing use of AI in our century is influencing a shift toward increased automation, data-driven decision-making, and the integration of AI systems into various areas of life, including health care. On the occasion of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology Spring Symposium 2024, reference was made to AI in dermatology, specifically trichology. Particularly in the domain of trichoscopy, AI's contribution to automated image analysis stands out. Due to the fairly standardized imaging and a limited amount of diagnoses, trichoscopic images have become a center of interest for automated medical image analysis and its commercial utilization. Yet, costly, multi-parameter computer-assisted trichoscopic image analysis is the least effective in medical practice. Using dermoscopy, signature patterns are seen in a range of scalp and hair conditions that have provided the foundation for diagnostic algorithms. Algorithms discourage physicians from thinking independently and with creativity. Doctors are trained to romance with technology. However, healing is replaced with treating, caring is supplanted by managing, and the art of listening is taken over by technology. The power of technology, particularly computer-based, may shake the confidence of a specialist in his initial diagnosis. Nevertheless, machines cannot replace the doctor's mind, and his thinking about what he sees and what he does not see. Ultimately, common AI mistakes are often not too different from mistakes born out of natural human error. Taking all of this into account, it does not seem wise to precociously hail an evolving technology in public without the respective experimentation and experience to back up its factual utility in our practice.