[lunchbox]

This looks like PatientsLikeMe (http://www.patientslikeme.com/), but specialized in Crohn's disease. I wonder how this site differentiates itself, and what aspects of it are unique to Crohn's vs. what could be generalized for other health conditions.

[seanahrens]

You know, that is the number one comparison people make. I should probably work on incorporating into these blog posts a little sentence or two to address the question more when it comes up. PatientsLikeMe has done a great job at building comprehensive tools for symptom and lab value tracking. Where they fall short however is providing a real palatable and compelling reason why people should do this.

And that compelling reason--it is our hypothesis--comes from community, and knowing that what you do on the site can very directly help others. And PLM is a quantitative system, not a community place. It is our belief that instead of feeling like a hospital's electronic health record system, successful software would feel more like a Facebook -- where it is the real relationships, your real ability to help others, that compel you to share your knowledge and what treatments have worked for you.

And yes, while Crohn's & Colitis are our first network, you are on the right track knowing that our heads are churning on ways to make software that helps people with one or more of many other chronic conditions.

I hope that is helpful!