An experimental smartphone app might be an effective alternative to a traditional method of assessing circulation in people who need surgery to restore normal blood flow to the heart.
Traditionally, they use the so-called Allen test, which involves blocking circulation to the hand until it turns white, then easing pressure on one of two main arteries to see if the hand turns pink again.
Researchers compared doctors’ assessment of hand color in the Allen test to an experimental circulation measurement app that uses a smartphone camera to monitor changes in color in the fingertips.
With the app, doctors correctly diagnosed artery health 92% of the time, compared with 82% with the Allen test, researchers report in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
Senior study author Dr. Benjamin Hibbert, a researcher at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute in Canada, said: “Using a smartphone to monitor changes in color in the fingertips is much more accurate in detecting subtle changes as opposed to the doctors’ general opinion of the color of the hand,”
While the results suggest that smartphones may one day have potential as medical tools, the app is experimental and not available for widespread use by doctors or patients. Many smartphone apps have not been rigorously tested in clinical trials necessary to win regulatory approval under standards established for medical devices.
One drawback of the study is that it used an older smartphone, the iPhone 4, with software and a camera that’s been changed many times in recent years as new versions of the device have been released. The results might be different with other smartphones, researchers note.
