GPT-4.1 and Llama 3.3 70 fail to detect clinically relevant errors in radiology reports in zero-shot evaluation
摘要
To evaluate whether GPT-4.1 and Llama 3.3 70B, large language models (LLMs) assessed in zero-shot, baseline configurations, detect and categorize clinically consequential errors across types that range from pattern-based to reasoning-dependent.
Materials and methodsTwo hundred fifty-six radiology reports encompassing CT (n = 104), MRI (n = 104), and X-ray (n = 48) studies across multiple anatomical regions were retrospectively analyzed. For each original report, four variants (n = 1024) were generated, each incorporating one of four predefined error types: E1, anatomical mislabeling that could cause wrong-site actions; E2, physiologically impossible or nonsensical findings; E3, diagnostic inconsistencies that affect staging or diagnosis; E4, inappropriate recommendations. The evaluated models were GPT‑4.1 04-14) and Llama 3.3 70B, both used without domain-specific training or prompt optimization to assess baseline model performance.
ResultsModel performance revealed a systematic hierarchy governed by error type and imaging modality. Physiologically impossible errors (E2) showed the lowest performance: 46.2% (CT) and 33.7% (MRI) for GPT-4.1, compared with 32.7% and 25.0% for Llama 3.3, respectively. Overall success for GPT-4.1 on E2 was 16.3% (CT), 8.7% (MRI), and 12.5% (X-ray). Mislabeling errors (E1) were detected in 49.0% by GPT‑4.1 and 33.7% by Llama 3.3 for MRI. Best performance occurred for inappropriate recommendations (E4), with GPT‑4.1 achieving 85.4% detection in X-ray with high classification accuracy.
ConclusionThe evaluation framework and benchmark dataset provide a methodology for assessing LLM performance on clinically significant errors. Applied to GPT-4.1 and Llama 3.3 70B in zero-shot settings, the framework reveals a performance gap between pattern-based and reasoning-dependent error detection that warrants investigation across additional models and optimization strategies.
Key Points