Epocrates is one of the most popular medical apps available for iPhones, iPads, Android, Blackberry, Palm, and Windows Mobile. It’s intended to help physicians access medical information — including drug dosing, reference values for vital statistics, and information about diseases — quickly and efficiently. Because the app market is glutted with medical applications, the value of Epocrates is that it combines the most important functions into a single app. In a recent press release, the Epocrates compay referred to the app as a “prescription for medical app overload”:
Mobile apps are only as valuable as they are useful. We’ve advanced the user experience of our world-class drug reference app and added a singular channel to discover, store and access reliable tools. Furthermore, this is a fresh foundation for new partner engagements and opportunities to deliver even more value-add resources to our network.
While Epocrates is intended for clinicians, patients may also find the information contained in the application useful. For instance, Epocrates can check whether two medications interact with one another, which can help consumers avoid potential dangerous drug overdoses associated with combination medicines available over the counter. The app also provides safety information for prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, including safety during pregnancy and lactation.
While Epocrates is a powerful healthcare tool, it’s a reference tool; essentially, a set of computerized reference books. The app is not a substitute for diagnostic ability in a physician, or a visit to the doctor by a layperson.
Diabetics often need to test blood glucose levels several times a day in order to make appropriate decisions about nutrition and, in the case of type 1 diabetics, insulin administration. Medisana, a German company, has developed hardware and an app that allow diabetics to test — and keep track of — blood glucose on an iPhone or iPad. The hardware, called the GlucoDock, connects to an Apple mobile device. The user puts a very small drop of blood on a test strip, and inserts it into the device. GlucoDock, via the VitaDock software, measures blood sugar and records the measurement for personal data tracking purposes.
The GlucoDock is just one of the devices that can be connected to an iPhone or iPad to measure and record health information through the VitaDock software. Other devices include the ThermoDock, which measures body (or room) temperature via infrared, the CardioDock, which uses a cuff to measure and track blood pressure, and the TargetScale, which calculates a variety of body composition metrics, including body mass index (a ratio of weight to height) and body fat percentage.
For many people, a mid-day coffee break helps boost alertness and increase productivity. It turns out there’s a science to coffee-drinking, and it’s more complicated than deciding between a latte and an espresso.
Researchers at Pennsylvania State University have developed a free iPhone app called Caffeine Zone that helps users maintain their blood caffeine levels in the best range for optimal mental performance, while limiting potential negative effects — such as sleeplessness — later in the day.
From Penn State:
The researchers used peer-reviewed studies as input data to determine that caffeine drinkers with between 200 and 400 milligrams of caffeine in their bloodstream are in an optimal mental alertness zone. For sleep, the researchers set a lower threshold of 100 milligrams. Drinkers may have sleep problems if they remain above this.
The app can…help people determine when to modify their caffeine habits, so that they might choose to drink a decaffeinated beverage, or mix a blend of caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees.
Users supply the app with information about when and what type of caffeinated beverages they consume, and the app makes suggestions about timing of future beverage breaks. The app is available on iTunes for free (with advertisements) or for purchase (without advertisements) and only works on Apple devices.
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