June 10, 2009

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When Hugh came back from his doctor's office with a diagnosis of colitis, his son Kevin immediately fired up his computer, logged on to the Internet and typed "colitis" into Google.

"When Google returned 6.3 million sites that met my search terms, I knew I had a ton of work to do if I wanted to get good information that would be helpful," says Kevin.

Kevin's situation isn't unique. Recent statistics show that 84 percent of online consumers have researched health care topics in the past year, and 81 percent have visited health care Web sites.

"There's so much medical information that you can find on the Web," says John Tu, M.D., an internal medicine physician and vice president and chief informatics officer at Beaumont Hospitals. "The key is finding information that's accurate, from a source that's reliable. There's no ‘Good Housekeeping' seal of approval for Web sites, so it's up to you to filter through the information you find."

Getting good information doesn't have to be hard. You just have to know what you're searching for.

First, use a good search engine. Sites such as Google, Yahoo or Ask.com will filter your results, so you end up with search results that are more likely to be relevant to your subject.

Another option is searching a clearinghouse that has been approved by health professionals. "There are a number of legitimate providers of reliable health information on the Web, including the FDA, government agencies and even hospitals," says Dr. Tu. "For example, all of the medical information on Beaumont Hospitals' Web site has been reviewed and approved by medical professionals."

Once you get to a site, consider the source.

"Web pages aren't always transparent," says Dr. Tu. "On any site, you should be able to find out who is responsible for the content, and who is paying for the site."

Dr. Tu suggests looking for an "About Us" link on the front page to determine who sponsors the site. "Some organizations may have marketing, social or political agendas that can influence the type of material they are posting on their site," he says.

A good place to start is the government. There are several government agencies that provide brochures and in-depth information on a variety of medical topics. Look to the Food and Drug Administration or the National Institutes of Health for resources.

Other questions to consider when looking for medical information on the Web: How current is the information on the site? "Web sites should be reviewed and updated regularly," says Dr. Tu. "The world of medicine changes, and it's important that the information you are getting is current."

Does the site link to other good sources of medical information? Links alone aren't a guarantee of reliability. Look for complementary links to reliable sources.