Smartphone App Could Help Doctors Diagnose Hereditary Diseases

Hereditary diseases can be difficult to detect, as they can present an array of symptoms similar to other illnesses. Researchers have created a smartphone app called “Phenomizer” that can help simplify diagnosis for these types of conditions. Doctors begin by entering the symptoms of their patient into the app. Then, the system scans a large database that stores over 10,000 disease characteristics and links them to 7,500 diseases. Researcher leader Dr. Marcel Schulz writes, “The doctors no longer have to research in databases or books for several hours. The list supports them in detecting the disease more quickly. Moreover, doctors can ask patients about their symptoms in greater detail. This makes it easier to assess which aspects they need to pay attention to.”
American Academy of Neurology’s 66th Annual Meeting, April 2014