ChatGPT Yields a Passing Score on a Pediatric Board Preparatory Exam but Raises Red Flags

Abstract

Objectives We aimed to evaluate the performance of a publicly-available online artificial intelligence program (OpenAI’s ChatGPT-3.5 and -4.0, August 3 versions) on a pediatric board preparatory examination, 2021 and 2022 PREP® Self-Assessment, American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Methods We entered 245 questions and answer choices from the Pediatrics 2021 PREP® Self-Assessment and 247 questions and answer choices from the Pediatrics 2022 PREP® Self-Assessment into OpenAI’s ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4.0, August 3 versions, in September 2023. The ChatGPT-3.5 and 4.0 scores were compared with the advertised passing scores (70%+) for the PREP® exams and the average scores (74.09%) and (75.71%) for all 10 715 and 6825 first-time human test takers. Results For the AAP 2021 and 2022 PREP® Self-Assessments, ChatGPT-3.5 answered 143 of 243 (58.85%) and 137 of 247 (55.46%) questions correctly on a single attempt. ChatGPT-4.0 answered 193 of 243 (79.84%) and 208 of 247 (84.21%) questions correctly. Conclusion Using a publicly-available online chatbot to answer pediatric board preparatory examination questions yielded a passing score but demonstrated significant limitations in the chatbot’s ability to assess some complex medical situations in children, posing a potential risk to this vulnerable population.