The Voice of Reason

See Part 1 of the iPhone Medical Software Review

Well, I just finished up Internal Medicine, so I’ll go over a few of the software programs that I found useful during the rotation. These are programs for the iPhone but there may be similar versions for Droid or other platforms. This review will cover three programs: Lab Tests, MedCalc and ECG Interpret.

1. Lab Tests

This is a program that, true to it’s name, displays lab tests, reference ranges and result interpretation. It does a great job of incorporating clinical information and even shows you the equipment to use, such as yellow top tubes for chemistry, etc. Clicking the “More” button on any test gives you journal and textbook references for the test as well as shows you the source of the test’s statistics. Overall, a very useful program for quick reference. Grade: 4.5 / 5. Reason: One-half a point is deducted for not having reverse lookup. That is, lookup test by disease.

2. MedCalc

Once upon a time, it was necessary to remember the components of things like the MELD score, the Wells criteria, the TIMI score, etc. It was slow and cumbersome to look these things up in a book. Welcome to 2010. It’s never been easier to reference these measures and, seriously, who has time to memorize all these things anyways? TIMI score for NSTEMI, TIMI score for STEMI, Wells Critera, Modified Wells criteria, Geneva score, ABCD^2 score, etc. As a wise doctor once said to me “there’s no need to be a purist.” MedCalc can rapidly calculate most prognostic scores, provide result interpretation and even show you the formula and rules applied to the score. Free your mind and free your time with this free app. Grade: 5 /5.

3. ECG Interpret

I call it my “pocket cardiology consult.” This program is nothing short of amazing. Not only does it lead you through a series of easy to follow prompts to arrive at your EKG diagnosis, but it even provides pictures and explanations of what you need to look for. Simply incredible. After using this program a few times, you’ll start to learn the interpretation of multiple syndromes and conditions with EKGs. As an added bonus, the program will even let you fill in basic patient information at the end and email the results and interpretation. For additional learning, it provides a sample EKG gallery of dozens of syndromes and conditions. Grade: 4.5 / 5. Reason: One-half point is deducted for not having a quiz feature that shows the EKG and asks for the interpretation.

Filed under: Apple iOS, Medicine, Reviews, Technology | Tagged: cardiology, iPhone, laboratory, Medicine, science, software, Technology |