Large language model bias auditing for periodontal diagnosis using an ambiguity-probe methodology: a pilot study

To our knowledge, this is among the first study to use simulated clinical ambiguity to reveal the distinct ethical fingerprints of LLMs in a dental context. While LLM performance gaps exist, our analysis decouples accuracy from fairness, demonstrating that both models maintain sociodemographic neutrality. We identify that the observed errors are not bias, but rather diagnostic boundary instability. This highlights a critical need for future research to differentiate between these two distinct types of model failure to build genuinely reliable AI.