First, The Beatles, now flagellate hyperpigmentation. There’s no limit for the apps someone can download for their iPhone or iPod.
The New England Journal of Medicine now has a smartphone application available for download that runs a version of the Journal’s popular Image Challenge. The app is available for $2.99.
Each week, NEJM posts a picture and lets users put their diagnostic skills to the test. The Challenge offers five choices for an answer and the correct one has an explanation with it.
In the image below, doctors were treating a 39-year-old woman for the appearance of a skin malady. The Challenge gave five possible answers as a diagnosis, including arsenic poisoning, self-flagellation, and, the correct answer, flagellate hyperpigmentation, a side effect from an antibiotic used in some cancer treatments.
“We’re really trying to stay at the electronic forefront,” says Dr. Edward W. Campion, the Journal’s senior deputy editor and online editor. “It’s intended for health professionals.”