Infectious Disease Reference

Our recommendation for most authoritative infectious diseases reference is the Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial Therapy ( www.sanfordguide.com ). The PDA version has the exact same content as the familiar print one and includes ambulatory, inpatient, adult and pediatric information. It is evidence-based and has extensive reference citations. Helpful notes suggest when antibiotics may not be necessary. It is not the easiest to navigate but the information is comprehensive and reliable.

The 2003 version of the Sanford Guide has additional content on bioterrorism and management of HIV/AIDS. It does have an auto-update feature (which we have not tried yet). Subscribers are entitled to a year's worth of downloads, but that is not of much use as the material is only updated annually anyway. Subscribers get a 10% discount on the next edition. The program is not large (just under 1.5 Mb) but prior versions used so many individual files that in our experience it took 30 minutes or more to install. Reportedly, this has been addressed in more recent versions. It will run on memory expansion cards. Also available for PocketPC.

The Johns Hopkins POC-IT ABX Guide ( www.hopkins-abxguide.org ) is the only remaining free ID reference for the Palm we have reviewed. Many people find it easier to navigate, but it has less content, and suffers from having no pediatric information at all. Unlike the independent Sanford Guide, it is sponsored by pharmaceutical interests. Like ePocrates, when it auto-updates it also monitors and reports on your use--nothing is really free! Also available for Blackberry, PocketPC and Windows CE, but not for Windows Mobile 2003 (the latest version).

A relatively new title, which we have not yet reviewed, is Lexi Infectious Diseases, from Lexi-Comp. Containing over 930 disease syndromes, organisms, diagnostic tests and antimicrobial agents, it appears to be a good and comprehensive reference (and the quality of their other products is very high). Finally ePocrates ID used to be a free alternative infectious disease reference, but since the last version of this document has been discontinued as a standalone product. It is now integrated into the fee-based ePocrates Rx Pro product (see the section on Drug References).