{
  "abstract": "Objective To explore how Chinese patients with precancerous ear, nose and throat (ENT) lesions experience using artificial intelligence (AI)-driven chatbots for health-related information seeking, with particular attention to perceived benefits, challenges and influences on information-seeking practices.Design Descriptive qualitative study.Setting Department of Otolaryngology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, China.Participants 12 adult patients with clinically diagnosed precancerous ENT lesions who had used AI-driven chatbots at least three times in the previous 30 days to seek health-related information about their condition were purposively recruited. Face-to-face, semistructured interviews were conducted between 11 October 2024 and 10 November 2024.Results Interviews were analysed using Colaizzi’s method. Four themes were identified. First, participants described AI chatbots as an immediate and accessible source of health information, particularly when questions arose outside clinical encounters or during periods of uncertainty. Second, many reported moving away from conventional search engines towards conversational information seeking, valuing direct and synthesised responses over link-based retrieval. Third, participants emphasised that obtaining useful answers depended on learning to ask clear and specific questions, suggesting that effective prompting was an important user skill. Fourth, some participants perceived chatbot interaction as emotionally safer than asking healthcare professionals certain questions, particularly when they felt embarrassed, worried about asking repetitive questions or feared being judged.Conclusions Among this sample of Chinese patients with precancerous ENT lesions, AI-driven chatbots were perceived as a convenient and conversational supplementary source of health information. Participants valued their accessibility and interactional ease, but also indicated that their usefulness depended partly on users’ ability to formulate effective prompts. Some participants additionally perceived chatbots as a more comfortable channel for asking sensitive or basic questions. The findings suggest that AI chatbots may have a complementary role in patient information support, but further research is needed to evaluate response accuracy, safety and appropriate integration into clinician-led care.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Ying Huang"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "State Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases & National Center for Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases, West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Qian Liang"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "GuoXin Medical Control Information Technology, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Zhifeng Lin"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Intensive Care Unit, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Maojie Zhang"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Xialu Liu"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Li Ding"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Rui Peng"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, West China Hospital, Sichuan University/West China School of Nursing, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China"
      ],
      "name": "Rong Yu"
    }
  ],
  "title": "AI chatbots for health information seeking among Chinese patients with precancerous ENT lesions: a descriptive qualitative study",
  "uid": "0065fb06-4544-5ffd-8f75-41f42e47d382"
}