Artificial Intelligence and Deep Learning: The Future of Medicine and Medical Practice.

ABSTRACT: Artificial Intelligence (AI) and access to "Big Data" together with the evolving techniques in biotechnology will change the medical practice a big way. Many diseases such as type II diabetes will no longer be considered as a single disease. Many familiar cancers such as cancer of liver or pancreas will have hundreds of subtypes whose management will be very different. The way we think about diseases will change. It will no longer be possible for clinicians to make a diagnosis, remember the names of diseases, the names of drugs or management protocols without the help of computers. As computer intelligence becomes more important than human intelligence in deciding diagnosis and treatment there will be a paradigm in the role of doctors. Internet, computers and social media will become more important than individuals in decision making. As a result, medicine will go more and more egalitarian ("wiki") with increasing community participation in health decision making and management. A socialistic pattern will evolve over time globally as an adaptive reaction to the pressures put by artificial intelligence. This is because the individual differences in knowledge or intellect between human beings will become less apparent compared to the super powers of artificial intelligence. Qualities which are unique for humans such as compassion, empathy and emotional care will decide the professional success of future physicians even more than today. Today we are using artificial intelligence in diagnosis and prediction to help clinicians. Clinical algorithms and human experience cannot be replaced by machines. It will take many years to completely merge or replace humans with machines. However, we need to modify our medical education system in order to prepare the medical community and sensitize the society well in advance for a smooth transition. © Journal of the Association of Physicians of India 2011.