Can chatbots help asthma patients?

Published online May 7, 2025

Asthma affects more than 260 million people globally and requires patients to actively manage their symptoms through ongoing education. As digital technologies evolve, people increasingly turn to online tools, including generative artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots, for answers to health-related questions. But are these tools reliable and understandable enough for patients, especially when it comes to managing a complex chronic disease like asthma?

In a new study published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, Nigro and colleagues evaluated how three widely used generative AI chatbots - ChatGPT (OpenAI), Bard (Google), and Copilot (Microsoft) - respond to real-life asthma-related questions submitted by patients. The study, named the AIR-Asthma (Artificial Intelligence Responses on Asthma) study, involved 15 questions of varying difficulty, which were answered by each chatbot. These answers were then blindly reviewed by investigators for reliability, by 21 clinical experts for accuracy and comprehensiveness, and by 16 patient representatives for understandability. This international project was conducted with the support of the European Lung Foundation and the European Respiratory Society Clinical Research Collaboration CONNECT. This is the first study to systematically assess multiple AI tools using a patient-centered and multicenter approach for asthma.

ChatGPT provided the most accurate, reliable, and comprehensive responses, while Bard’s answers were rated easiest to understand by patients. Although Copilot also performed reasonably well, it lagged behind the other two tools across most metrics. The findings suggest that AI chatbots may offer a useful starting point for patient education in asthma, but variability in response quality means they should complement, not replace, conversations with healthcare professionals.

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice is an official journal of the AAAAI, focusing on practical information for the practicing clinician.

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