As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to be integrated into health care, a new study from Denmark sheds light on how dental patients really feel about its growing role in diagnostics.
The verdict? Patients are cautiously optimistic, welcoming the potential benefits of AI but drawing a firm line: humans must stay in charge.
The research—published in Dentomaxillofacial Radiology—explored patients’ attitudes toward the use of AI in reviewing dental imaging, an area with increasing adoption although little is known about how patients perceive it.
Overall, patients viewed AI as a useful diagnostic support tool that can enhance accuracy and efficiency. Yet the study revealed persistent concerns—especially around data privacy and the fear that AI might drive up health care costs rather than reduce them. Crucially, the overwhelming majority of participants insisted that AI should not operate without professional human oversight.
The study also highlighted cultural nuances among the six countries involved in the study. Brazilian participants, for instance, were more open to AI replacing dentists in some situations—perhaps reflecting frustrations with long wait times and uneven care quality in the country’s health system.
Source: Patients say ‘yes..ish’ to the use of AI in dentistry / Bite Magazine