From the 14 November 2014 item at ScienceDaily
Source:Health Behavior News Service, part of the Center for Advancing Health
Summary:More than 40 percent of U.S. Internet users use online search engines to seek guidance on weight loss and physical activity. A new study finds that high-quality weight loss information often appears after the first page of search engine results.
Given that obesity affects one-third of Americans, it is not surprising that more than 40 percent of U.S. Internet users use online search engines to seek guidance on weight loss and physical activity. A new study in the American Journal of Public Health finds that online searchers often initially encounter poor-quality weight loss information.
The study reveals that the first page of results, using a search engine like Google, is likely to display less reliable sites instead of more comprehensive, high-quality sites, and includes sponsored content that makes unrealistic weight loss promises.
..
“Federal agencies, academic institutions and medical organizations need to work a lot harder at search engine optimization to get their links on top of searches,” Modave added. “Consumers need to be more critical when reading online. Ideally, they could read original studies from which many stories are written but, of course, that’s not realistic for most people.”
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November 25, 2014
Posted by Janice Flahiff |
Consumer Health | Google, Search engine optimization, Search engines, Web search engine, Weight loss |
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Ever enter your symptoms into a search engine (as Google) to find what was the cause? And bring the results to your health care provider? Believe that search engines can correctly diagnose your symptoms?
A medical researcher not only was thinking along these lines. He also set up a system to see if search engines could diagnose symptoms accurately.
The results were published in a scientific paper.**
Here are some remarks from medical librarians at their discussion group.
- They don’t address the problem with these search engines of bias: Google,
Bing, track what you’ve searched on, they aren’t ‘anonymous’ engines, thus
biasing the results. A different computer, with different previous user
will give different results with these search engines. Flawed article,
in my opinion. Too bad, it is interesting.
- This article is very interesting. While it is about validating the instrument for analyzing the webpages, they found that only 14% of the website gave a correct diagnosis. Seventy percent came up with the diagnosis as part of a differential. It sort of scares me that many medical students and other healthcare students might use search engines to find differentials. One implication is that patients who bring in webpages may actually hold the appropriate differential in their internet printout. Physicians might consider that information. The article is NOT an open access journal. The abstract does not discuss the findings of accuracy since they were testing the scoring system.
My thoughts? Familydoctor.org (American Academy of Family Physicians) has great advice
Our symptom checker flowcharts allow you to easily track your symptoms and come to a possible diagnosis.
Remember, be sure to consult with you doctor if you feel you have a serious medical problem.
As a medical librarian, we counsel people to use any information they find as a resource when consulting with their health care provider. Information on the internet may be outdated, flawed, and sometimes even wrong.
Also, the health care providers views you as a whole person, not just a narrow set of symptoms. They use not only your symptoms, but other factors as health history, current and past treatments, and environmental factors to work toward a treatment plan.
Related Resources
Online symptom checkers (Standford Health System)
** Abstract from PubMed.
Full text of article not available online for free.
Might be available for free or low cost at a local public, medical, or academic libary.
Call ahead and ask for a reference librarian.
Many medical and academic libraries offer some help to the public.
Int J Med Inform. 2014 Feb;83(2):131-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2013.11.002. Epub 2013 Nov 19.
The accuracy of Internet search engines to predict diagnoses from symptoms can be assessed with a validated scoring system.
Shenker BS.
Author information
- Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Family Medicine Residency at CentraState, United States. Electronic address: bshenker@centrastate.com.
Abstract
PURPOSE:To validate a scoring system that evaluates the ability of Internet search engines to correctly predict diagnoses when symptoms are used as search terms.METHODS:We developed a five point scoring system to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of Internet search engines. We identified twenty diagnoses common to a primary care setting to validate the scoring system. One investigator entered the symptoms for each diagnosis into three Internet search engines (Google, Bing, and Ask) and saved the first five webpages from each search. Other investigators reviewed the webpages and assigned a diagnostic accuracy score. They rescored a random sample of webpages two weeks later. To validate the five point scoring system, we calculated convergent validity and test-retest reliability using Kendall’s W and Spearman’s rho, respectively. We used the Kruskal-Wallis test to look for differences in accuracy scores for the three Internet search engines.RESULTS:A total of 600 webpages were reviewed. Kendall’s W for the raters was 0.71 (p<0.0001). Spearman’s rho for test-retest reliability was 0.72 (p<0.0001). There was no difference in scores based on Internet search engine. We found a significant difference in scores based on the webpage’s order on the Internet search engine webpage (p=0.007). Pairwise comparisons revealed higher scores in the first webpages vs. the fourth (corr p=0.009) and fifth (corr p=0.017). However, this significance was lost when creating composite scores.CONCLUSIONS:The five point scoring system to assess diagnostic accuracy of Internet search engines is a valid and reliable instrument. The scoring system may be used in future Internet research.Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
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January 24, 2014
Posted by Janice Flahiff |
health care | diagnosis, Google, Internet search engines, Medical diagnosis, online diagnosis, search engine, Search engine optimization, Search engines, symptom checkers, symptoms, Web search engine |
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Fairly comprehensive.
Annotations and ratings would have been useful, however.
Still, am thinking most of the search engines would give more focused results than general search engines.
From the directory
This white paper link compilation is designed to give you the latest resources available to find selected and niched information in the healthcare field for healthcare research both professional and personal. It is divided into two categories: a) Search Engines and Selected Bots, and b) Directories, Subject Trees and Subject Tracers. These resources allow you to begin your research using the latest sources that are available on the Internet. Using both bots and subject directories to initialize your healthcare research allows one to create a broad spectrum approach to the information available.
Click here to view the directory
And from a summary of the directory
Healthcare Bots and Subject Directories
Healthcare Bots and Subject Directories is a 30 page research paper listing selected resources both new and existing that will help anyone who is attempting to find the latest information about healthcare search engines and subject directories available on the Internet. It is freely available as a .pdf file (319KB) at the above link from the Virtual Private Library™ and authored by Marcus P. Zillman, M.S., A.M.H.A. It was completely updated, reviewed and link validated on September 1, 2013. Other white papers are available by clicking here.
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September 3, 2013
Posted by Janice Flahiff |
Finding Aids/Directories, Librarian Resources | Search engines, Web directory, Web search engine |
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Hmm… interesting “point” “counterpoint” items on finding health information on the Web
Overall, I think Google and other search engines are doing a better job of locating health information.
However, it is good to keep in mind that search engines rank items, they do not evaluate them!
So, search safely, knowing that search engines do not index 100% of what is available on the World Wide Web.
If you do decide to find health information on the Web, please evaluate content carefully!
Health Information is best used in consultation with a professional health care provider (or 2!)
A few good guides on evaluating health information may be found at
Unlike information found in medical textbooks, which has been evaluated and edited by professionals, the information on the Internet is unfiltered. It is up to the user to evaluate and judge how good the information really is. When looking for health information it is particularly important to think about the information critically and examine the Web site carefully. Listed below are some questions and tips to think about when searching for good health information on the Internet.
What type of site is it? Is it a government site, educational or commercial? Look at the web address for the extension. The most common are .gov for government, .edu for educational, .com for commercial and .org for organizational.
Who is sponsoring the site? A good Web site will make sponsorship information clear. There should also be an address (besides an e-mail address) or a phone number to contact for more information.
What are the credentials of the sponsor or author of the material on site? If it is an organization or association, is it nationally recognized or is it a local group? Also, are the author’s qualifications relevant to the topic being discussed? For example, someone with a Ph.D. in psychology should not necessarily be accepted as an expert on nutrition.
What is the purpose of the site? Is it a public service or is it trying to sell something? If there is advertising on a page, something that is more and more common even with non-commercial sites, it should be clearly separated from the informational content. Also, it is easy to disguise promotional material as “patient education” on web sites. If a product or treatment is given a good review on one site, try to find other sites that also approve of it.
How current is the information? A good site will list when a page was first established and when it was last up-dated. If there are links to other sites, are they up-to-date?
How accurate is the information? This can be hard to determine if you’re not familiar with a topic but there are some things to look for. For example, is the information free of spelling errors and typos? Mistakes of these kind can indicate a lack of quality control. Are the sources of factual information listed? For instance, if a document states, “recent studies indicate…”, are the sources for the study listed so they can be verified? If a topic is controversial, is the information presented in a balanced way? There are many controversies in regard to treatment options; however, a good site will present the pros and cons of a particular option. Be cautious with sites that claim “miracle cures” or make conspiracy claims.
Evaluate each site separately. Links can often lead from a good site to ones of lesser quality.
Look for awards or certificates that a site has received. For example, the HON Code logo is displayed by sites that have agreed to abide by eight principals set by the Health on the Net Foundation. These principles set standards for accuracy, bias, sponsorship and confidentiality. When using a directory or search engine that rates sites, read the page that discusses what criteria are used to determine a site’s rating.
The Internet is a wonderful source of information and, when used carefully, can be very helpful in answering health-related questions. But the information found on the Internet should never be used as a substitute for consulting with a health professional. And, whenever using the Internet, keep in mind the caveat, “It is so easy to post information on the Internet that almost any idiot can do it, and almost every idiot has.”
And finally, a few good places to start finding reputable, timely health information
 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the US governments primary way to communicate information on diseases, conditions, and safety. Information may be found in areas as ….
 eMedicine Consumer Health has over 900 health and medical articles. Most articles include causes, symptoms, treatment options, prevention, prognosis, and more. Information may also be browsed by topic (Topics A-Z). Additional features include picture slideshows, health calculators, and more.
Familydoctor.org includes health information for the whole family
Short generalized information on Diseases and Conditions (with A-Z index), Health Information for Seniors, Men, and Women, Healthy Living Topics, pages geared to Parents & Kids, and videos. Numerous health tools in the left column (as health trackers, health assessments, and a Search by Symptom page.
Healthfinder.gov is a US government Web site with information and tools that can help you stay healthy. Resources on a wide range of health topics carefully selected from over 1,600 government and non-profit organizations. Social media options to connect you with people and organizations that can help you on your journey to living a healthier life.
 KidsHealth provides information about health, behavior, and development from before birth through the teen years. Material is written by doctors in understandable language at three levels: parents, kids, and teensKidsHealth also provides families with perspective, advice, and comfort about a wide range of physical, emotional, and behavioral issues that affect children and teens.
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February 13, 2012
Posted by Janice Flahiff |
Educational Resources (High School/Early College(, Finding Aids/Directories, Health Education (General Public) | Google, health information, Search engines, Web search engine |
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Digital Librarian: a librarian’s choice of the best of the Web.
Digital Librarian is a carefully selected list of great resources on just about every t0pic one would expect covered in a public library setting.
Librarian Margaret Vail Anderson updates this listing almost every month.
Of particular interest in the health/science areas are
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December 30, 2011
Posted by Janice Flahiff |
Finding Aids/Directories, Librarian Resources | health information, Search engines, subject directories |
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Health and Medical News and Resources 