New App Introduced to Help Parents Detect Jaundice in Infants
A new research in the University of Washington has invented a Jaundice application known as BilliCam. This app helps in the diagnosis of Jaundice in babies but is yet to be launched.
The app has been created by Dr. Jim Taylor, a pediatrician who has been working for more than 20 years. He has worked with engineers and local doctors to come up with the app. It helps parents to differentiate the normal yellow color in new born babies with ones who have Jaundice.
The process of using the app includes placing a multicolored frame over the baby’s stomach and taking a picture using a smart phone, keeping the flash on. The app then analyzes the baby’s skin color and checks if it’s an appropriate level. In case a child is suffering from Jaundice it also scales its level.
According to researchers, such apps are the need of the time, as children spend less time in hospitals compared to a decade ago. It is not a replacement for medical experts, but it helps to identify the disease and allows the treatment to start at the right time.
The app has already tested 100 babies of age 2 to 5 days old and has showed promising results. It is currently in development and yet to be tested on 500 more babies before it releases in next 10 to 12 months.
The new app is both cost and time effective. It can end up as a huge cost saver, as the current process costs around $8000 in USA.
Jaundice is a very common disease in infants and must be taken seriously by the parents; it normally peaks on days 3 to 5 of life. Out of 4 million children born in USA every year, around 3.5 million has someform of Jaundice.
It is normally identified by yellow pigmentation caused by too much bilirubin in the blood. An abnormal amount of bilirubin can cause permanent issues such as brain diseases or sometimes in extreme conditions retardation or even deafness. The app when released would be available on the internet.
Other Child Monitoring Apps
Another app used to monitor your child’s health and development has become increasingly popular in parenting circles. The app allows you to maintain a record as well as detect the onset of diseases as earlyas possible. The Kids’ Wellness Tracker is available online and can be pourchased for a small sum of money. Let’s see some of its features:
Height, Weight, &; BMI Trackers: Chart your children’s progress as they grow.
Vaccine Tracker: Track which shots your children have had and when, so you can plan ahead for doctor’s visits.
Medicine Tracker: Store your children’s medicine information in one place.
Symptom Tracker: Record temperature and symptoms to build your children’s health histories, and set reminders to help track fever, temperature, and symptoms.
Reports: Create reports based on the information that you’ve saved in your children’s trackers to review with your pediatrician.
Dosing Calculator: Calculate the correct doses for Children’s TYLENOL® and Children’s MOTRIN® products. Please consult your healthcare provider for pediatric TYLENOL® dosing for children under 24 pounds or under 2 years of age.
Learning Resources: Now available in 7 languages! Build your knowledge about common childhood conditions with easy-to-read information on topics including:
- Infant Crying and Gas
- Ear Infections
- Treating Fever
- Taking Your Child’s Temperature
