A THEORETICAL APPROACH TO ARTIFICIAL-INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS IN MEDICINE

The various theoretical models of disease, the nosology which is accep ted by the medical community and the prevalent logic of diagnosis dete rmine both the medical approach as well as the development of the rele vant technology including the structure and function of the A.I. syste ms involved. A.I. systems in medicine, in addition to the specific par ameters which enable them to reach a diagnostic and/or therapeutic pro posal, entail implicitly theoretical assumptions and socio-cultural at titudes which prejudice the orientation and the final outcome of the p rocedure. The various models -causal, probabilistic, case-based etc. - are critically examined and their ethical and methodological limitatio ns are brought to light. The lack of a self-consistent theoretical fra mework in medicine, the multi-faceted character of the human organism as well as the non-explicit nature of the theoretical assumptions invo lved in A.I. systems restrict them to the role of decision supporting ''instruments'' rather than regarding them as decision making ''device s''. This supporting role and, especially, the important function whic h A.I. systems should have in the structure, the methods and the conte nt of medical education underscore the need of further research in the theoretical aspects and the actual development of such systems.