4 ms·

This has the same problem as hypochondriac internet forums. I put in "tired" and got a list of: depression, diabetes, hypothyroidism, atrial fibrillation,anxie

by rdouble 15y ago

This has the same problem as hypochondriac internet forums. I put in "tired" and got a list of: depression, diabetes, hypothyroidism, atrial fibrillation,anxiety ,multiple sclerosis, congestive heart failure and gastroesophageal reflux disease. If I click on "increased risk," I get: valley fever, muscular dystrophy, hemolytic anemia, intracranial abscess, thalassemia, gallbladder cancer, polycythemia vera, and autonomic nervous system disorder. Nowhere does it ask me if I happened to get enough sleep...

loceng 15y ago
First need to solve for hypochondria. :) Maybe they need a big button that says "Are you really worried right now?" and if you click it, tell you logical steps and routine you need to be following long-term for the results to "feel more normal" - otherwise to not use to self-diagnose.
cmonsen 15y ago
The data comes from ED and outpatient doc visits so it "assumes" a certain level of concern from the user at the outset. However, the algorithms can learn so that less severe diagnoses ("lack of sleep", "caffeine withdrawal", etc) will rise to the top as more people indicate that is the problem.
- tansey 15y ago
  Couldn't you just add a prior probability that someone has any problem? Going to the ER is much more difficult than typing something into a web app, so you should use your expert knowledge to adjust that. It would also seem like a better approach would be to have a prior that's much lower for the internet and is never updated based on user searches, then continue hand-entering real records for quality control purposes. Otherwise, sooner or later some internet community (4chan, SA, etc) will get carried away and start manipulating your system to make everyone think they're dying of elephantiasis.
  - cmonsen 15y ago
    Agreed, and that's a very reasonable place to start for conditions that are not challenging diagnoses but rather explanations for common symptoms (eg too little sleep, bumped my knee, etc). WRT abuse, we're going to require the log-in and user consent before collecting any data and allow people to maintain, in effect, their own medical record. We can monitor for abuse (eg someone who seems to visit a hospital thousands of times / day).
nooneelse 15y ago
You are looking for the old-country-doctor AI. That is the one that would also catch, unlike this site, my dry throat and itching eyes as probably being me not drinking enough water so far today.

by rdouble 15y ago

loceng 15y ago

First need to solve for hypochondria. :) Maybe they need a big button that says "Are you really worried right now?" and if you click it, tell you logical steps and routine you need to be following long-term for the results to "feel more normal" - otherwise to not use to self-diagnose.

cmonsen 15y ago

The data comes from ED and outpatient doc visits so it "assumes" a certain level of concern from the user at the outset. However, the algorithms can learn so that less severe diagnoses ("lack of sleep", "caffeine withdrawal", etc) will rise to the top as more people indicate that is the problem.

tansey 15y ago
Couldn't you just add a prior probability that someone has any problem? Going to the ER is much more difficult than typing something into a web app, so you should use your expert knowledge to adjust that. It would also seem like a better approach would be to have a prior that's much lower for the internet and is never updated based on user searches, then continue hand-entering real records for quality control purposes. Otherwise, sooner or later some internet community (4chan, SA, etc) will get carried away and start manipulating your system to make everyone think they're dying of elephantiasis.
- cmonsen 15y ago
  Agreed, and that's a very reasonable place to start for conditions that are not challenging diagnoses but rather explanations for common symptoms (eg too little sleep, bumped my knee, etc). WRT abuse, we're going to require the log-in and user consent before collecting any data and allow people to maintain, in effect, their own medical record. We can monitor for abuse (eg someone who seems to visit a hospital thousands of times / day).

nooneelse 15y ago

You are looking for the old-country-doctor AI. That is the one that would also catch, unlike this site, my dry throat and itching eyes as probably being me not drinking enough water so far today.