This article by Taleen Lara Ashekian, Simon Fraser University originally appeared on the Conversation and is published here with permission.
It’s possible that the search results could offer accurate answers about the cause of the person’s symptoms. Or the search might erroneously suggest they’re well on their way to an early death. Virtual care and online self-diagnosis share some beneficial traits, such as the convenience of not having to schedule an appointment, saving travel time to the doctor’s office and avoiding waiting rooms. However, the key difference between virtual care and Googling symptoms is that there is no direct communication with a physician when self-diagnosing online.
Using the internet to learn more about a condition after being diagnosed by a health-care provider may be useful and may decrease the stress of a diagnosis if the sites consulted are trustworthy. There is also a risk of becoming so certain that one’s self-diagnosis is correct that it is difficult to accept a different diagnosis from a health-care professional. Misdiagnoses can even be very serious if it results in failure to detect a possible heart attack, stroke, seizure or tumour.
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