Currently over 300,000 iPhone apps and 60,000 iPad apps are available from the iTunes Apps store and from third-party developers, and that number continues to climb every day. Thousands of iPhone apps provide endless hours of entertainment for Apple users worldwide. From gaming apps to cookbooks and apps that turns an iPhones into flashlights, there is literally an app for every interest or whim.

Contrary to popular belief, though, apps are not only about fun and games anymore. Of those available iOS apps, 1,500 are related to the area and study of health, and for the first time, the Mobile MIM iPhone app has finally acquired approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

The FDA Battle

Although it is already available in 14 languages throughout various countries, it has taken about three years and as many FDA approval applications for the iPhone app to gain its approval from the health conscious government department. The delay is attributed to a lack of communication between MIM developers and the administration, but patience and perseverance has paid off. The FDA’s approval means that the department found the app to be “substantially equivalent” to a comparable device that they had already approved.

MIM App FAQs

MIM Software Incorporated in Cleveland, Ohio, developed the software, called Mobile MIM. The iPhone app operates by way of a secure network, sending compressed images so that physicians may view them without waiting for film to be developed The app allows radiologists to remotely view CT scans, MRIs, and PET scans at the touch of the screen. In addition to displaying medical imagery, Mobile MIM also allows doctors to compare scale, make annotations, and highlight measurement lines, as well as areas of interest, such as blemishes that could medical abnormalities warranting further research.

The quality of the image – whether viewed on the iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch – has been approved as being clear enough to take accurate and medically useful readings. In fact, a screen contrast test within the application tests luminance levels specifically to confirm or correct image quality, depending on the environmental lighting in which the app is being used.

What the Medical App Does Not Do

The FDA approved iPhone app is not meant to be used as a source of diagnosis, but rather it should be used in instances when a typical workstation is not accessible. For example, a radiologist looking for a second opinion on a CT scan may use the app while on vacation to show a colleague and acquire another professional opinion. The chairperson of the American College of Radiology confirms that this new medical-imaging software is by no means a primary medical tool.

Although it has been called a “radiology diagnostics app,” and others claim physicians may use it to make medical diagnoses, these statements can be misleading and even dangerous. The app is in no way as reliable or professional as the medical equipment used by radiologists. It has been suggested that the iPhone app be used mainly as an aid in explaining courses of treatments to patients. Likewise, non-radiologists can use the app while consulting and confirming treatments, although it is not meant for the average person to use, either.

However, the convenience of accessing MRIs, CT scans, and PET scans on a mobile device may tempt more and more medical professionals to depend on the app, which can lead to misdiagnoses and ensuing medical complications. While convenient and innovative, the Mobile MIM iPhone app should be used with an ounce of caution and as originally intended and only as a resource in times when a workstation is unavailable.