Contact: Hugo Juhling McClung, (614) 722-3453.
Written by Holly Wagner, (614) 292-8310.
ON-LINE MEDICAL INFORMATION OFTEN NOT UP TO PAR, RESEARCHERS SAY
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Medical information proliferates on the World Wide Web, but much of that information may be inaccurate or out of date, a new study suggests.
Researchers used a typical illness as a test case to gauge the accuracy of information. They found that only 20 percent of Web sites sponsored by traditional medical sources used the most recent medical guidelines when offering advice on how to treat childhood diarrhea.
Even major hospitals and medical schools were offering outdated information, said Hugo Juhling McClung, professor of pediatrics at Ohio State University.
"The big issue is that major hospitals and medical centers aren't policing what they're putting out there," McClung said. "There is a lack of oversight of what's put on the Web."
The study was published in the June issue of Pediatrics.
McClung and his colleagues searched for information on childhood diarrhea the same way a parent might. They did two inquiries using Web search engines. One search used the terms "diarrhea" and "treatment" and the second search added the term "child." The researchers examined the first 200 Web sites they found using the first search and an additional 100 sites they found using the second search.
They found 60 sites that originated from traditional medical sources, such as medical or osteopathic physicians, registered nurses, or Ph.D.s in traditional medical fields such as microbiology.
The remaining 240 Websites included duplicate and non- functional addresses, repeated information and alternative medicine sites.
The researchers determined whether the sites conformed to the guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) for treating diarrhea in children. Out of the 60 articles from traditional medical sources, only 12 complied with the AAP recommendations.
"My favorite speculation of why the information is so poor is lack of oversight," McClung said. "There's a rush to get info on the Web, but finding adequate information on the Web is a gamble. Patients need to seek reputable medical sources."
Information errors from traditional medical sources on the Web abound, McClung said. For example, the researchers found misleading statements such as "diarrhea is the body's method to eliminate undesirable elements," "diarrhea is caused by eating greasy junk food," and "restrict oral intake" during diarrhea, all of which contradict AAP opinion.
According to the research, inappropriate recommendations from university-based medical centers included advising several hours of fasting for infants with diarrhea and recommendations for highly structured, ritualistic diets.
According to the AAP, diarrhea is commonly caused by a virus and the best way to combat the illness is to give the child fluids regardless of illness severity.
Despite the problems this research discovered, McClung does not discount the Internet as a way for families to reach out to one another for advice and support.
"We often see Web use in a family whose child has a very rare condition," he said. "They see the Internet as a way to communicate with one another, to share new information. I think that's wonderful."
McClung co-authored this study with Robert Murray and Leo Heitlinger, both associate professors of pediatrics at Ohio State.
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