What an AI symptom checker can and can't do
A symptom checker is a way to think through what you're feeling before you decide what to do next. It is not a diagnosis. The most useful thing it can do is help you answer one question: does this need a doctor today, this week, or can it be looked after at home?
Saluvo is built around that question. It reads what you write, looks for warning signs, asks what's missing, and ends with which kind of doctor to see and how soon.
How Saluvo checks your symptoms
Red flags come before the AI
Every message goes through a fixed set of rules before any AI model sees it. These rules look for signs such as chest pain or pressure, trouble breathing, a face that droops on one side, a sudden worst-ever headache, fainting or a fit, heavy bleeding, a fever in a baby under 3 months, poisoning or a snake bite, a swelling throat, and thoughts of self-harm. They work in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Arabic, Hindi and Hinglish, and in Tamil, Telugu and Bengali scripts.
If a rule matches, you see an emergency banner with your country's number at the top of the answer. Common phrases like "food poisoning" or "stroke risk" are set aside so they don't raise a false alarm.
Emergencies are never blocked by credits
You get 3 free AI answers to emergency messages every day, even without credits or an account. After that, the banner and the safety advice still show for free; only the longer AI answer is skipped.
A careful answer, not a long one
When nothing urgent shows up, Saluvo gives a one-line answer first, then a few short sections in simple words. It uses generic medicine names, like paracetamol or ibuprofen. For children, pregnancy, older adults and anyone on regular medicines, it sends you to a doctor or pharmacist before any medicine. If it isn't sure, it says so.
Are AI symptom checkers accurate?
Honestly, not reliably enough to replace a doctor. Published studies of online symptom checkers have found they often miss the right condition, and they do better at telling urgent from non-urgent than at naming a cause. That's why Saluvo doesn't try to name your illness. It focuses on warning signs, the questions a doctor would ask, and where to go next.
You can help it give a better answer:
- Say how long it's been and whether it's getting worse.
- Give your age and any long-term conditions.
- List the medicines you take, including ones you bought yourself.
- Mention what you've already tried.
Is a free symptom checker safe to use?
It's safe when you use it as a first step, not the last one. Use it to get your thoughts in order, to learn which signs mean "go now", and to prepare for a visit. Don't use it to talk yourself out of care you feel you need. If something feels wrong, trust that and get seen.
What you can add
With a free account you can attach a photo or PDF, like a photo of a rash or a discharge note and your chats are saved. Every answer is charged at 3 times what it cost us to make: about 0.1 of a credit in Normal mode, or about 3.5 credits in Pro, which uses Claude Opus. Turn on web sources to have the answer cite trusted medical sites, which adds about 0.8 of a credit. If an answer fails to arrive, nothing is charged.
