New Zealand doctors and medical students have been downloading an app that allows sharing of “freak show” photographs of patients for medical purposes. The popularity of the case-sharing app Figure1 – described as an Instagram for doctors – has prompted warnings from Auckland University about its use. The app was launched in Canada in 2013, and essentially allows doctors to crowd-source diagnoses. Medical professionals can upload pictures of diseases or wounds to the app, asking other users for their input into treatment or causes. Anyone with a smartphone can access it – it is not restricted to doctors.
