A U-M neurologist has developed an application called Nerve Whiz for those in the medical field to study the anatomy of the peripheral nervous system directly from their iPhones. It is apparently helpful for professionals of the medical field to gain more knowledge regarding the complicated structures of plexuses, nerve roots and peripheral nerves.
The application will soon be launched for Android phones as well and claims to provide more than the simple nerve charts to aid medical professionals in interpreting clinical examinations.
Zachary London, M.D., assistant professor of neurology, director of the University of Michigan neurology residency program and inventor and developer of Nerve Whiz stated, “Before you can figure out what is causing neurologic symptoms, you have to determine what part of the nervous system isn’t functioning normally. Neurologists call this ‘localizing the lesion.”
Users can select which muscles are weak or at which point the patient has experienced sensory loss and the app then gives a differential diagnosis accompanied by relevant pictures and diagrams. This app is apparently popular among medical students, physical therapists, physicians, anatomists and occupational therapists in USA as well as other nations.
“Nerve Whiz helps you localize by taking the information from your physical examination of a patient and synthesizing a list of possible anatomic regions which could be disrupted. If there is more than one possibility, Nerve Whiz lets you know which other muscles you need to examine to hone in on the answer,” added London.
According to London, the application simplifies the working of the nervous system making it easy for anyone to understand what is generally thought of as a complex subject.
The Nerve Whiz app can be downloaded for free from the App store.