Earache? Check your smartphone
A new app and a paper cone quickly and easily reveal middle-ear inflammation.
MEDICINE Earache is the most frequent reason for children to see a doctor – partly because there is not much parents can do at home to examine or ameliorate the condition.
Scientists from the University of Washington aim to change that. They have developed a phone app that can reveal fluid accumulation in the middle ear. Middle- ear inflammation is often caused by an infection that makes liquid collect behind the eardrum; the liquid pressure on the inside of the drum causes the pain.
The app uses the phone’s speakers and microphone, with the only other thing required being a tiny funnel made of paper in the form of a cone. The pointed end of the funnel is placed in the child’s external ear, and the phone’s microphone is placed at the wide end of the funnel. The app emits a series of brief sounds sounding like bird chatter. The sounds are reflected by the eardrum back to the phone’s microphone, and the interference patterns between the speaker and the reflected sounds are analysed by the app to reveal whether there is liquid behind the eardrum or not.
In experiments with 53 young children who had been taken to the doctor with earache, the app correctly revealed the liquid in 85% of cases, which is just as high a hit rate as can be achieved by an otologist. The experiments also showed that the app functioned equally well on a number of different mobile phones (where microphone and speakers can vary).