Artificial intelligence as an adjunctive tool in hand and wrist surgery: a review

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is currently utilized across numerous medical disciplines. Nevertheless, despite its promising advancements, AI’s integration in hand surgery remains in its early stages and has not yet been widely implemented, necessitating continued research to validate its efficacy and ensure its safety. Therefore, this review aims to provide an overview of the utilization of AI in hand surgery, emphasizing its current application in clinical practice, along with its potential benefits and associated challenges. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across PubMed, Embase, Medline, and Cochrane libraries, adhering to the Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The search focused on identifying articles related to the application of AI in hand surgery, utilizing multiple relevant keywords. Each identified article was assessed based on its title, abstract, and full text. The primary search identified 1,228 articles; after the application of inclusion/exclusion criteria and manual bibliography search of included articles, a total of 98 articles were covered in this review. AI’s primary application in hand and wrist surgery is diagnostic, which includes hand and wrist fracture detection, carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), avascular necrosis (AVN), and osteoporosis screening. Other applications include residents’ training, patient-doctor communication, surgical assistance, and outcome prediction. Consequently, AI is a very promising tool that has numerous applications in hand and wrist surgery, though further research is necessary to fully integrate it into clinical practice.