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I used Claude Code to get a second opinion on my MRI

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Why This Matters

This article highlights the emerging role of AI tools like Opus 4.8 in providing second opinions on medical imaging, potentially empowering patients with more informed insights. While not a substitute for professional medical advice, such technology could influence future healthcare practices and patient engagement in diagnosis. It underscores the importance of integrating AI responsibly into medical workflows to enhance accuracy and patient confidence.

Key Takeaways

This article is about my experience using Opus 4.8 to read the results of an MRI and give me a sort of second opinion on the diagnosis. Of course, I know the technology might not be there yet, which is why I'm sharing this article. Maybe it can help someone or at least provide a bit of information or entertainment.

Disclaimer: I'm of course not a doctor (this is actually the problem!) so please take everything I say with a grain of salt.

Some context (feel free to skip)

For a few weeks now, I've been experiencing some pain in my right shoulder. Even though it seemed to be getting better, I decided to get an opinion from an orthopedist. I won't go into the details, but he suggested I get an MRI, which the clinic conveniently had available. I agreed and mainly learned that I had a "Grade III (>50%-width) partial-thickness tear at the apical insertion" of my subscapularis tendon. This, of course, means little to me, but their suggested course of treatment was extensive; they even started a few minutes after I got the MRI. Coming out of the clinic, I had the feeling they had jumped the gun.

Thankfully, before I left, I asked them to send me a copy of the MRI results and a list of all the treatments they performed and suggested we repeat a total of 3 times.

I sent everything over to GPT 5.5 Pro, and right away it flagged two things:

They performed shockwave therapy on my shoulder even though a recent clinical practice guideline says clinicians should not use or recommend shockwave therapy for rotator-cuff tendinopathy without calcification; I was told during ultrasound that there was no calcification. They injected me with Traumeel, which is registered in Germany as a homeopathic medicine "without a therapeutic indication".

That did not increase my confidence. So it made me curious to analyze the MRI.

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