Clinical endocrinologists can choose from among a number of specialized mobile applications to aid and support them in daily practice. Clinical calculators, endocrine disease staging tools, point of care resources, decision algorithms, and vast archives of clinical literature are immediately available. Two apps are FDA- and HIPPA-approved and one of these can be prescribed for patients to help optimize diabetes self management. One system syncs blood glucose data from many popular meters to mobile devices.The slides that follow comprise my personal list of the 10 best medical apps for practicing endocrinologists, in no particular order. The apps listed do not reflect the opinions of my employer. (Aileen McCrillis, MS, MPH is the research librarian at NYU Health Sciences Library in New York.)
The Endocrinology & Endo Emergency (EEE) app is a physician-authored point-of-care resource for physicians recognizing and managing acute endocrine issues. EEE includes referenced information on a variety of clinical topics and includes the latest consensus guidelines for management of endocrine-related conditions.
The Endocrinology & Endo Emergency (EEE) app is available for Android. Details here.
Developed by an endocrinologist, Endo Tools is tailored to endocrinologists’ needs and includes several clinical calculators as well as a thyroid cancer staging tool.
Focused on the needs of endocrinology specialists, this app includes numerous pertinent medical equations, clinical criteria sets, decision tree tools, and dose/unit converters.
The cost to download MedCalc 3000-Endocrine is $4.99 and the app is available for iOS and Android. Details here.
Endo Pubs makes it easy for you to quickly access articles from The Endocrine Society’s leading journals: The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), Endocrinology, Endocrine Reviews, and Molecular Endocrinology. Designed for easy reading on your mobile device, Endo Pubs allows you to bookmark articles as well as share them via email, SMS, and social media.
Endo Pubs offers a free trial period and then requires a subscription for access to premium content. Details here.
Developed by the American Diabetes Association, this app includes the latest standards for diagnosing and treating diabetes; nutrition recommendations and principles; and valuable guidelines on managing diabetes and its complications in various settings. User-friendly navigation helps clinicians locate specific topics quickly.
The American Diabetes Association Standards of Care app is free and is available for iOS. Details here.
The Johns Hopkins Diabetes Guide is designed to assist clinicians by distilling complex material into need-to-know information, easily accessible for rapid viewing. Content is automatically updated by Johns Hopkins and content is stored locally on your device and can be accessed offline.
Available for Android and iOS, the Johns Hopkins Diabetes Guide app costs $29.99. Details here.
Calculate by QxMD is just one of many medical calculator apps out there, but it is on this list because it is a comprehensive source of calculations and formulas categorized by medical specialty. For example, an endocrinologist can assess hyperlipidemia and determine cardiovascular risk to guide lipid treatment using the Framingham and Reynolds Risk Scores. Calculate by QxMD also includes calculators for BMI and ideal body weight.
QxMD Calculate is free to download and is available for Android, Blackberry, and iOS. Details here.
5 Minute Clinical Consult (5MCC) provides quick access to evidence-based content on diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up for more than 900 medical conditions. The app also includes access to McGraw-Hill Medical’s Diagnosaurus® with 1,000 differential diagnoses.
The 5 Minute Clinical Consult app costs $99.99; it is available for Android and iOS. Details here.
BlueStar Diabetes is the first app to require a prescription from a health care professional. The app helps patients with type 2 diabetes by suggesting when to test their blood sugar and how to control it by varying medication, food, and exercise. BlueStar Diabetes is FDA-approved and has been shown to be effective in clinical studies.
Approved by the FDA, the BlueStar Diabetes app is free to download. Premium service fees are currently covered by some insurers. Details here.
Glooko syncs patient blood glucose data from many popular meters to mobile devices. Patients can also add data on carbs, insulin and oral meds, exercise, blood pressure, and weight using their mobile device. Glooko is FDA-approved and HIPAA-compliant, so that patients may share data with their health care team.
Glooko is free to download and is available for Android and iOS. Details here.
