Artificial intelligence has been shown to achieve successful outcomes in various orthopedic qualification examinations worldwide. This study aims to assess the performance of ChatGPT in the written section of the Turkish Orthopedics and Traumatology Board Examination, compare its results with those of candidates who took the exam, and determine whether ChatGPT is sufficient to achieve a passing score. This retrospective observational study evaluated whether ChatGPT achieved a passing grade on 400 publicly available questions from the Turkish orthopedics qualification exam over the past four years. ChatGPT's performance was compared with the mean scores of the candidates who took the exam. A total of 627 candidates participated in the four exams included in the study, of whom 292 (46.5%) passed. ChatGPT received higher scores than 619 (98.7%) of the candidates. In all exams conducted between 2020 and 2023, ChatGPT achieved significantly higher scores than the mean exam success rate (p=0.012, p=0.012, p=0.002, p=0.005, respectively). Of the 400 questions analyzed, 36 (9%) included figures. This is the first study to evaluate the performance of ChatGPT in the Turkish orthopedics proficiency exam. Our findings indicate that ChatGPT demonstrated high success in the Turkish Orthopedics and Traumatology Board Examination (TOTBE) written exam, achieving higher scores than the vast majority of candidates taking the exam (98.7%). ChatGPT performed well in the first part of the proficiency exam, where only theoretical knowledge is assessed. However, the human factor, which synthesizes both theoretical and practical knowledge, remains essential in daily medical practice.

Joint Diseases and Related Surgery (JDRS), the official journal of the Turkish Joint Diseases Foundation, is an international, peer-reviewed, immediate open access journal. All published articles in JDRS has been free for everyone, without embargo, since 1990.

Background: Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a surgical intervention that significantly improves patients’ quality of life, but the preoperative process can cause uncertainty, anxiety, and a lack of information. In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots and large language models have begun to play important roles in patient information processes in the healthcare field. In this study, the answers given by chat generative pretrained transformer (ChatGPT)-4.0 and DeepSeek-V3 AI programs to the 10 most frequent questions about TKA asked by patients before surgery were compared, and the effectiveness of AI in the patient information process was analyzed with the evaluations of orthopedists. Methods: Using Google Trends, patient forums, and clinical experiences, the 10 questions that TKA patients are most curious about in the preoperative, peroperative, and postoperative periods were determined. These questions were directed to ChatGPT-4.0 and DeepSeek-V3, and the answers were recorded. Five orthopedists (minimum 5 year surgical experienced) evaluated the answers using a Likert scale (1–5) according to criteria such as scientific accuracy, explanatory power, understandability for the patient, and detailed content. Results: The mean Likert score of ChatGPT-4.0 (4.7 ± 0.2) was found higher than the mean Likert score of DeepSeek-V3 (3.5 ± 0.3) (P < .05). ChatGPT-4.0 provided more comprehensive and detailed information, while DeepSeek-V3 provided superficial answers, especially in the answers to questions such as “life of the prosthesis,” “postoperative complications,” and “return to daily activities.” Conclusion: Our study showed that ChatGPT-4.0 is more effective than DeepSeek-V3 in terms of patient information regarding total knee replacement. It is emphasized that AI-supported systems are a fast and accessible source of information for patient education; however this information must be inspected by medical authorities for accuracy. Future studies should be conducted with larger patient populations, to increase the reliability of AI-based patient information systems and ensure their integration into clinical practice. Level of evidence: Level 5.

Joint Diseases and Related Surgery (JDRS), the official journal of the Turkish Joint Diseases Foundation, is an international, peer-reviewed, immediate open access journal. All published articles in JDRS has been free for everyone, without embargo, since 1990.