Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) released its new health app on Thursday, called CareKit, which is designed to help users check their medical conditions, as well as actively manage it.

CareKit was announced last month, and it is a toolkit that lets developers build health apps for patients to have a better understanding of the changes in their health and share that information with their doctors, so these can check their patients’ wellbeing. The app can measure, for example, how someone is recovering from surgery.

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CareKit won’t be broadly available until next month, but Apple demonstrated several apps that were given early access. Credit: Apple

CareKit framework uses the same methods Apple has used before to track people’s physical activities and other types of data, such as the Health app, which can measure the amount a person has run, for instance. The apps in the framework help illustrate the potential for connected health and self-care support.

So far, the framework is made up of four modules, but developers can build more. The four modules include the Symptom and Measurement Tracker, which lets patients record their symptoms and how they are feeling; the Activity scorecard, which checks if required medicine or exercises are taken; the Progress monitoring; and the Share function.

The apps available so far include the free One Drop diabetes management app, which tracks glucose levels, food, medication, and activity. The app will sync its data from Bluetooth-enabled handheld blood glucose monitors, as well as it will provide schedules, insights, and medication reminders. One Drop is supported by Apple Watch that helps the software build a good picture of patient health.

Another app is the Glow Nurture, which is a pregnancy tracker for mothers that want to log their progress and access information about what to expect during pregnancy. Also, Glow Baby, from the same developer, is an app supported by the framework that tracks the critical first year of the child’s life, providing personalized tips.

Iodine Inc’s Start app is also available and it is aimed for those suffering from depression. The app provides a series of tests and tracking tools that patients can use in order to monitor the effectiveness of prescribed medication for their condition.

This could potentially be useful since not every anti-depressant medication works successfully with every patient, so identifying those that do work fast should help build successful treatment plans, which means that the app will help the patient as well as doctors and scientists.

Apps for epilepsy, post-surgical care, and management of chronic conditions are not available right now, but Apple says they are also in development from various reputable providers.

As well as siting alongside HealthKit, which tracks its users’ physical activities, it also works like the ResearchKit, which allows similar information to be sent out for studies so scientists could get data through people’s phones.

Source: Computer World