Artificial intelligence in spine surgery

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) technology has rapidly advanced in recent years, particularly in fields such as computer vision and natural language processing, where significant breakthroughs have been made. The emergence of large language models has greatly enhanced AI’s ability to understand and generate text, accelerating its application across various domains. The AI-generated content has maintained a trend of rapid growth, with ChatGPT (OpenAI, USA) and DeepSeek-V3 (DeepSeek, China) gaining global attention due to their outstanding performance. AI development in spinal surgery is still in its early stages. Although some hospitals have pioneered the deployment of deep learning models in imaging and surgical assistance systems, AI tools that are widely adopted and routinely integrated into the daily practice of most spinal surgeons remain scarce. Developing models and tools with high accuracy, strong interpretability, and trustworthiness remains one of the primary goals for AI development in spinal surgery. This review summarizes the recent advancements in AI within the field of spinal surgery, exploring the current challenges, transformations, and future opportunities of AI in spinal surgery. The aim of this review is to enhance the understanding of AI’s role in spinal care among clinicians, clinical researchers, AI scientists, and patients. Our goal is to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and development, thereby fostering a comprehensive understanding of AI’s potential in improving spinal care.

Keywords

artificial intelligence / ChatGPT / DeepSeek / large language models / spine

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