June 1, 2015 (Vol. 35, No. 11)
Rating:
Strong Points: Regularly updated medical information for antibiotics
Weak Points: None
Platform:
iPad/iPhone
Cost:
Free
Summary:
The Epocrates Bugs + Drugs app—a collaboration between Epocrates and athenahealth—nicely combines geographic data and medical records to provide location-specific information on antibiotic resistance (the so-called “antibiogram”). Data from isolates obtained from three culture types—urine, blood, and skin—are included in the app. Users can browse national data or limit the display of data to those centered on a specific location. From there, users can select a specific organism from the displayed list to view the percentage of isolates that were sensitive to different antibiotics. The “information” section of the app contains some basic information that will help users navigate the app, including a list of abbreviations and details about the methodology. As the app includes a lot of specific medical information for each of the antibiotics (such as dosing and contraindications), medical professionals and students will likely get the most out of this app.
