Three factors make Couplers different from – and better than – all other medical guidance tools:

1. Our technology. The KnowledgeNet, our specialized medical database, matches patient information with medical data, creating a detailed view of each patient's unique problems and treatment options.
2. Our people. We have 25 on-site researchers working full-time to build, review, and update Couplers based on the latest medical journals.
3. Our focus. PKC only builds Couplers. We believe in our product and focus on making it as good as it can be.

Read more about what sets us apart.

Some health tools simply provide encyclopedia entries on a given health topic – prepackaged solutions for generic patients. Couplers account for each individual patient and his or her unique symptoms and background. They match thousands of pieces of information against thousands of potential problems or treatments. In other words, Couplers are about people, not "average patients."

No. While some Couplers are designed for a consumer to complete without assistance, most Couplers require input from both consumers and their healthcare providers in order to provide accurate results. All Couplers, even those with provider questions, can help consumers prepare themselves for their next office visit. PKC recommends that consumers discuss the results of all Couplers with their healthcare providers.

Guidance Options are care recommendations based on the individual patient's unique medical information. Each option appears because at least one of your answers matches information from the medical literature.

Don't be alarmed if there are more Guidance Options than you expected. Medical problems are complicated and different for each person. Not every option will apply to you, but the list provides a roadmap for you and your healthcare provider to follow.

Read more about Guidance Options.

Each Coupler is based on clinical textbooks, consensus reports, and clinical practice guidelines. This framework is supported with information from the latest medical literature, including clinical trials.

The PKC medical content development team scours over 30 core medical journals and many specialty journals for new information to include in Couplers. The team also monitors the Cochrane database, journal clubs, and abstract journals to find articles not indexed by MEDLINE.

We regularly scan The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association), The Annals of Internal Medicine, and many more.

PKC updates Couplers regularly and releases new versions semiannually.

Our medical content staff constantly scans the clinical books, medical journals, and other sources used to build Couplers. As these sources are updated, the team evaluates them and incorporates appropriate changes into the Coupler.

We include references in Couplers based on the following principles:

• All information in a Coupler is based on published literature. The references show that the information is from published sources; they are not an exhaustive list for a subject.
• Information from older sources is continually verified in newer sources. We replace old references with new ones when the information has been confirmed by one or more newer sources.
• Certain types of medical information rarely change. For example, the fact that a kidney stone can cause flank pain is indisputable, whenever the reference was made. Also, if newer studies are published but the older one is still definitive, we do not replace the reference.
• Sometimes an older source is the only documentation for certain information. In cases where information from an older source is unique and deemed not to be obsolete, the older reference is left intact.

The health advice in each Coupler is based on an extensive search of the latest medical literature. Each question is included because its answer suggests a specific piece of advice.

Couplers are available for Microsoft® Windows® and for the World Wide Web. Both versions deliver the same medical information. The system requirements are different for each version.

The Couplers for Windows interface and software features are designed primarily for the specific needs of healthcare professionals.

Couplers for the Web are designed with the healthcare consumer in mind. The questions are more clearly displayed and more explanations are available. Special reports enable a consumer to make best use of their information, which can be brought to a healthcare professional.

You can share information between the two versions of the software. For example, you could use the Windows version to open a file you created with the Web version. Contact PKC for more information.

Healthcare consumers can try the Wellness and Health Review Coupler for free at any time.

Employers and healthcare professionals can contact us to arrange a demonstration of the full range of condition-specific Couplers.