Another Outstanding App from the ACC Focused on Educating Patients on Cardiac Anatomy and Common Diseases
Heart disease remains the primary cause of death in the United States, accounting for 1 in 4 deaths. However, adult cardiac disease encompasses far more than atherosclerosis. From cardiac murmurs to atrial/ventricular fibrillation to heart failure, adult cardiac patients face numerous complex and often debilitating or fatal conditions.
Both primary care providers and cardiologists must be able to explain these conditions which involve foreign terminology and challenging anatomy for patients to comprehend. Explaining these complex conditions with patients is challenging enough; the treatments to remedy these conditions such as catheter ablation, cardiac resynchronization, stenting, valvuloplasty are complex and have known risks.
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has been producing some outstanding apps. Previously on iMedicalApps we reviewed their outstanding ASCVD, Anticoag Evaluator, DAPT calculator, LDL Manager, TreatHF, and BridgeAnticoag apps. The newest app from the ACC that I have downloaded and been using this week is called CardioSmart Heart Explorer.
CardioSmart serves as a point of care educational tool for providers on common and less common cardiac disease using high-quality animation and videos. The app covers topics such as basic cardiac anatomy, cardiac murmurs, arteries/veins, and pathology of all of those areas as well as treatments such as stents, etc. The quality of the images, animations, and videos is outstanding. The app is produced by the ACC Foundation and designed by medmovie.com. This app should be considered the adult corollary to the equally exceptional pediatric cardiac defect app, Heartpedia.
Evidence-based medicine
CardioSmart, by the ACC is an app for patients, families, and medical providers to explain the most common adult cardiac abnormalities. The app from the ACC and animations from medmovie.com. The app appears to be based on both medical evidence/literature and expert opinion. No references/links are provided.
What providers would benefit from this App?
Students, residents, mid-levels, primary care, cardiologists. The app should be used at the POC to explain cardiac abnormalities to patients and their families.
Price
o Free.
Likes
- High-quality 3D models of normal and abnormal adult heart anatomy, pathologies with labels, animation, and videos
- Ability to draw on some models for POC explanations
- Available for Android
Dislikes
- No sound/explanation/voiceover for videos
- No text or more detailed explanation of pathology
- Labels don’t “move” with the animation when using app
Overall Score
o 5.0 stars.
User Interface
o 5.0 stars.
Easy to use with most of the information available from the app home page with ability to toggle labels, layers of anatomy, animation, and videos easily.
Multimedia Usage
o 5.0 stars.
Although some of the more expensive anatomy apps may display more detailed models of the heart, none contain the level of cardiac pathology and animations as CardioSmart. Easily add/subtract ribs, muscles, arteries, etc. All videos and animations downloaded with the app.
Price
o 5.0 stars.
App is free.
Real-World Applicability
o 4.5 stars.
An outstanding patient education app for cardiac disease for primary care providers and especially for cardiologists. The app is primarily illustrative/animation based with little explanatory text so providers will still want other resources for handouts, etc.. The quality of the 3D models and videos is outstanding. Highly recommended.
Device Used For Review
o iPhone 11 Pro running iOS 13.3.1
Available for iPhone, iPad, and Android.
Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the official policy of the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government.
