Technology and healthcare are blending at record pace, with more than 165,000 apps involving health and wellness available for download.
Experts see almost unlimited potential, but regulation typically lags innovation which could harm consumers.
“It’s clearly a net positive, but I think there are risks to it,” Dr. Karandeep Singh, a professor at the University of Michigan told the LA Times. Singh recently evaluated the quality and safety of hundreds of mobile health apps.
Dr. Leslie Saxon, cardiologist and executive director of the USC Center for Body Computing, said there’s “unbelievable potential” for these new technologies to save lives.
For example, doctors can now continuously monitor heart rhythm data and watch for problems in patients, while other apps can alert asthmatics when they’re entering an area with poor air quality.
But many doctors express concern about people reaching for their smartphones for medical guidance, even if the technology is considered low-risk.
“It’s like having a really bad doctor,” said Dr. Singh.
Many doctors don’t want to stop innovation in the sector with over-regulation, so as Johns Hopkins researcher Dr. Timothy Plante said the industry is experiencing “growing pains.”
Go more in-depth at LA Times.com.
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