More Pediatric Radiology Smartphone Apps Needed

The development of new pediatric radiology applications developed by health care professionals could fill the current gap in the marketplace, particularly if aimed towards patients and their families, according to a study published in Pediatric Radiology.

Researchers from the United Kingdom assessed the variety of smartphone applications related to pediatric radiology and who helped develop them.

The researchers searched the most popular smartphone marketplaces (Apple iTunes App Store, Blackberry Mobile Market, Google Play Android Market, Nokia Ovi, Samsung, and Microsoft Windows Marketplace) for applications related to pediatric radiology. They were looking for:

• Cost

• Review ratings[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_crop","fid":"41082","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image media-image-right","id":"media_crop_1011624629462","media_crop_h":"0","media_crop_image_style":"-1","media_crop_instance":"4283","media_crop_rotate":"0","media_crop_scale_h":"0","media_crop_scale_w":"0","media_crop_w":"0","media_crop_x":"0","media_crop_y":"0","style":"height: 100px; width: 150px; border-width: 0px; border-style: solid; margin: 1px; float: right;","title":"©Puwadol Jaturawutthichai/Shutterstock.com","typeof":"foaf:Image"}}]]

• Downloads

• Health care involvement

• Target audience

The researchers found that the Apple iTunes App Store and Google Play Android Market each had nine applications; all were targeted to health care professionals and had medical expertise listed in their development information; no application was geared towards patients or families.

“Due to the small number available online, there is a potential gap in the marketplace for further applications in this field, possibly aimed at patients and their families,” the authors concluded.