Artificial intelligence in assisting pathogenic microorganism diagnosis and treatment: a review of infectious skin diseases

Abstract

The skin, the largest organ of the human body, covers the body surface and serves as a crucial barrier for maintaining internal environmental stability. Various microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses reside on the skin surface, and densely arranged keratinocytes exhibit inhibitory effects on pathogenic microorganisms. The skin is an essential barrier against pathogenic microbial infections, many of which manifest as skin lesions. Therefore, the rapid diagnosis of related skin lesions is of utmost importance for early treatment and intervention of infectious diseases. With the continuous rapid development of artificial intelligence, significant progress has been made in healthcare, transforming healthcare services, disease diagnosis, and management, including a significant impact in the field of dermatology. In this review, we provide a detailed overview of the application of artificial intelligence in skin and sexually transmitted diseases caused by pathogenic microorganisms, including auxiliary diagnosis, treatment decisions, and analysis and prediction of epidemiological characteristics.