March 9, 2021

Performance of National COVID-19 ‘Symptom Checkers’: A Comparative Case Simulation Study

Category: Article Summary

Topic: Testing and Treatment

Keywords (Tags): public health, screening, testing

• Using simulated patients designed to have signs and symptoms consistent with typical COVID-19 presentations as well as patients with conditions that can mimic COVID-19 (e.g. sepsis and bacterial pneumonia), the CDC Coronavirus Symptom Checker only successfully triaged 38% of cases to seek further health assessment. In contrast, the corresponding symptom checkers used in the UK, Japan, and Singapore triaged 44%, 77%, and 88% of cases to healthcare contact, respectively. Both the US and UK symptom checkers consistently failed to identify severe COVID-19, bacterial pneumonia, and sepsis, triaging such cases to stay home.

Mansab et al. (Mar 8, 2021). Performance of National COVID-19 ‘Symptom Checkers’: A Comparative Case Simulation Study. BMJ Health & Care Informatics. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjhci-2020-100187