5 tips for doing medical research online

Many websites provide useful information when it comes to medical information, but there are important questions to ask when you research.

• Put the name of the site into a search engine to see if others have praised the site or challenged its integrity.

• Does the site's content seem even-handed? Does it describe both advantages and disadvantages of treatments, for example?

• Can you tell who paid to develop and host the site? Often, sites include a page called "Who We Are" or "About Us." These pages identify the people behind the site.
• If a site doesn't provide this information, be skeptical.

• How strong is the scientific evidence cited? For example, are medical claims backed by references to randomized controlled trials?

• Once you find reliable medical sites, don't make the mistake of trying to self-diagnose what ails you. "You're going to find out quickly that it's not an easy thing to do," says Dr. Vicki Rackner.
• For instance, let's say you develop a fever and decide to go online to figure out why. You'll soon learn that it could be because you have the flu. Or an ear infection. Or measles, meningitis, malaria or any of more than 600 other medical conditions."It's dangerous to become your own diagnostician," she says. Leave that judgment to your doctor.
• Instead, keep a file of your research, take it with you to office visits and ask your doctor to explain any key point you don't understand. Surveys suggest that the majority of doctors today are comfortable with patients doing their own research online and bringing information to appointments. In a 2007 survey, about two-thirds of doctors called this trend positive.
• Finally, don't feel you have to spend hours trawling the Internet. Some people feel that they're bad patients if they don't rush home and plug the name of their condition into a search engine, says Dr. Rackner. If you accept your doctor's diagnosis and feel comfortable with the treatment prescribed — and you want to leave it at that — that's okay. Forcing yourself to seek more details or data will probably only increase your anxiety. "You need to know what dose of this information is optimal for you," she says.