Ear infection app relies on smartphone to get the job done

“There’s an app for that,” or so the saying goes, and when we talk about apps, first and foremost it would be the iPhone that comes to mind as that was the handset which more or less kickstarted the whole app store shebang. Well, researchers over in Atlanta are working on an app which when used in conjunction with your smartphone (one that has a flash built-in for the camera, of course), it will be able to transform your device into an ear scope.

Dr. Lam and his team of researchers over at the Children’s Healthcare, Georgia Tech, Emory, and a California biomedical company have come together to develop an earache app which will transform your smartphone into a scope. Dr. Lam explained, “That enables the camera, and the light source of the smart phone to function as an otoscope, an ear scope. Theoretically, all you need to do is push a button. And you have an image of the ear.” Seems like a no-brainer, no? We wonder what the uptake of this app will be among parents in the long run.

Edwin Kee
Categories: Medical
Tags: Apps