Beware of Online Diagnosis Dangers

By Bryon Zirker

You just typed in some symptoms into WebMD's database and
the results returned said that you may have Lymphoma or you
have Anthrax Poisoning! Wow.

You go to the doctor and find that you are suffering from
a bad case of strep throat. Easily treatable.

A recent article in The New York Times stated that at least
three-quarters of Internet users do personal and family health
research online. Point in fact one in nine high-speed-connection
users do health research on a given day.

Here is the main problem, sites like WebMD create the potential
for misdiagnosis, which obviously can cause undo mental anguish
for the person requesting the data. No one wants to panic for
no reason.

Many medical conditions very have similar symptoms - and many
different treatments. Confuse strep throat and the benign scratchy
throat you get with a cold, and you could end up with rheumatic
fever which of course is very serious.