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Original Medical Notes Versus AI Plain-Language Summaries

NCT07602725 · Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 135

Last updated 2026-05-22

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn how patients feel when reading their medical notes. The study compares reading the original doctor's note with reading a simpler, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-generated version written in plain language in adults receiving musculoskeletal specialty care.

The main questions the study aims to answer are:

1. Does reading a plain-language summary change how patients feel about their doctor or their clinic experience?
2. Does the type of note affect how comfortable, reassured, or worried patients feel?

Researchers will compare patients who read their original clinic note with patients who read an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-generated plain-language summary to see whether simpler language changes patient understanding, trust, or emotional responses.

Participants will:

* Read either their original clinic note or a plain-language summary of the note
* Complete short questionnaires about their experience, emotions, and trust in their clinician
* Optionally provide written comments about how it felt to read the information

Conditions

  • Musculoskeletal Disease
  • Orthopedic Patients

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

LLM-Generated Medical Note

The intervention consists of presenting participants with an LLM-generated plain-language summary of a prior musculoskeletal clinic note. The summary will be produced from a curated version of the original documentation after removal of all protected health information (PHI), macros, and administrative content. Physical therapy notes will be excluded, and normal examination or imaging findings may be simplified (e.g., "Exam otherwise normal"). The LLM will be instructed to preserve clinical meaning while reducing jargon and improving readability. The summary will be concise, neutral in tone, and written in patient-friendly language without adding new medical information or altering clinical recommendations. The specific LLM platform is not yet finalized but will likely use the most current version of ChatGPT and/or Perplexity available through institutional access.

BEHAVIORAL

Control (Original Medical Note)

Participants randomized to the control arm will review the original clinical note from their prior musculoskeletal clinic visit. The note will be presented in its original format without language simplification. Participants will review the note on an iPad prior to their clinic visit and complete questionnaires assessing trust, experience, and emotional responses.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University of Texas at Austin

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • David Ring, MD, PhD · Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, TX, United States

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
DOUBLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
89 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2026-06-01
Primary Completion
2026-12-01
Completion
2027-02-01

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07602725 on ClinicalTrials.gov