BACKGROUND: Dermatologic patient education materials (PEMs) are often written above the national average seventh- to eighth-grade reading level. ChatGPT-3.5, GPT-4, DermGPT, and DocsGPT are large language models (LLMs) that are responsive to user prompts. Our project assesses their use in generating dermatologic PEMs at specified reading levels.
OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess the ability of select LLMs to generate PEMs for common and rare dermatologic conditions at unspecified and specified reading levels. Further, the study aims to assess the preservation of meaning across such LLM-generated PEMs, as assessed by dermatology resident trainees.
METHODS: The Flesch-Kincaid reading level (FKRL) of current American Academy of Dermatology PEMs was evaluated for 4 common (atopic dermatitis, acne vulgaris, psoriasis, and herpes zoster) and 4 rare (epidermolysis bullosa, bullous pemphigoid, lamellar ichthyosis, and lichen planus) dermatologic conditions. We prompted ChatGPT-3.5, GPT-4, DermGPT, and DocsGPT to \"Create a patient education handout about [condition] at a [FKRL]\" to iteratively generate 10 PEMs per condition at unspecified fifth- and seventh-grade FKRLs, evaluated with Microsoft Word readability statistics. The preservation of meaning across LLMs was assessed by 2 dermatology resident trainees.
RESULTS: The current American Academy of Dermatology PEMs had an average (SD) FKRL of 9.35 (1.26) and 9.50 (2.3) for common and rare diseases, respectively. For common diseases, the FKRLs of LLM-produced PEMs ranged between 9.8 and 11.21 (unspecified prompt), between 4.22 and 7.43 (fifth-grade prompt), and between 5.98 and 7.28 (seventh-grade prompt). For rare diseases, the FKRLs of LLM-produced PEMs ranged between 9.85 and 11.45 (unspecified prompt), between 4.22 and 7.43 (fifth-grade prompt), and between 5.98 and 7.28 (seventh-grade prompt). At the fifth-grade reading level, GPT-4 was better at producing PEMs for both common and rare conditions than ChatGPT-3.5 (P=.001 and P=.01, respectively), DermGPT (P<.001 and P=.03, respectively), and DocsGPT (P<.001 and P=.02, respectively). At the seventh-grade reading level, no significant difference was found between ChatGPT-3.5, GPT-4, DocsGPT, or DermGPT in producing PEMs for common conditions (all P>.05); however, for rare conditions, ChatGPT-3.5 and DocsGPT outperformed GPT-4 (P=.003 and P<.001, respectively). The preservation of meaning analysis revealed that for common conditions, DermGPT ranked the highest for overall ease of reading, patient understandability, and accuracy (14.75/15, 98%); for rare conditions, handouts generated by GPT-4 ranked the highest (14.5/15, 97%).
CONCLUSIONS: GPT-4 appeared to outperform ChatGPT-3.5, DocsGPT, and DermGPT at the fifth-grade FKRL for both common and rare conditions, although both ChatGPT-3.5 and DocsGPT performed better than GPT-4 at the seventh-grade FKRL for rare conditions. LLM-produced PEMs may reliably meet seventh-grade FKRLs for select common and rare dermatologic conditions and are easy to read, understandable for patients, and mostly accurate. LLMs may play a role in enhancing health literacy and disseminating accessible, understandable PEMs in dermatology.

BACKGROUND: Dermatopathology education accounts for 30% of U.S. dermatology residency training. The COVID-19 pandemic expedited the implementation of virtual dermatopathology in place of traditional microscopy for resident education. This study examined U.S. dermatology residents\' perceptions of virtual dermatopathology, as research in this area is lacking.
METHODS: An anonymous, confidential, institutional review board-approved survey was electronically distributed to U.S. dermatology residents consisting of 16 questions comparing attitudes towards virtual and traditional dermatopathology education. Responses were n = 59. Statistical analysis was performed using SAS software.
RESULTS: Participants believe virtual imaging is superior to conventional microscopy in schedule flexibility (96.6% vs. 1.7%, p < 0.0001), lecture convenience (94.8% vs. 0.0%, p < 0.0001), personal review (96.6% vs. 0.0%, p < 0.0001), cost-effectiveness (64.4% vs. 6.8%, p < 0.0001), and board exam preparation (52.5% vs. 16.9%, p = 0.0005). Conventional microscopy was favored for image quality (50.8% vs. 25.4%, p = 0.0127) and overall utility (50.8% vs. 27.1%, p = 0.0195).
CONCLUSIONS: Our study supports virtual dermatopathology utilization as a valuable tool in dermatology residency training. Also it is shown that conventional microscopy training continues to play a key role. Further studies should examine whether, if ever, virtual dermatopathology could gradually replace conventional microscopy with the advent of newer and more powerful digital and scanning technology.

OBJECTIVE: Burnout syndrome is a mental health disorder due to chronic occupational stress. Both burnout and associated comorbidities are prevalent among health care professionals, being medical residents a vulnerable group. Despite this, the scientific medical literature currently available on this issue in dermatology residents is scarce. The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence of the burnout syndrome, anxiety, and depression in dermatology residents, and the associated risk factors.
METHODS: This was a cross-sectional trial designed to include dermatology residents from Spain (from December 2022 through June 2023). A self-administered form was sent via online messaging applications, including validated scales to study professional quality of life, burnout syndrome, anxiety, and depression.
RESULTS: A total of 48 dermatology residents were included in the study, 50% of whom (24/48) were women, with a mean age of 27 years (1.25). A total of 58.33% (28/48) of the residents had some degree of anxiety, 22.9% (11/48) some degree of depression, and 23.4% a moderate risk of burnout (11/48). Workload was the main risk factor associated with the 3 disorders studied, while managerial support or intrinsic motivation seem to play a protective role.
CONCLUSIONS: Burnout syndrome and its comorbidities are both prevalent in dermatology residents in Spain and closely related to each other.