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70 Comments
- KenSPT, on 02/12/2009, -4/+34Symptom checkers do nothing but add to the insane hypochondria so many people in this country suffer from ...
- divinediva, on 02/12/2009, -2/+12I found it to be useful.
- austinshea, on 02/12/2009, -2/+11In soviet russia...?
- Lonewolfx77, on 02/12/2009, -1/+9While the Internet might be a great way to look up symptoms, recognize illnesses, and research treatment options, you should never use it in place of a doctor. Many illnesses have very similar symptoms, and a computer is not going to be able to recognize the difference. But it is kinda a cool thing to mess with.
- joebleaux, on 02/12/2009, -1/+9You have Leprosy.
- inactive, on 02/12/2009, -0/+7I don't get a lot of decapitated people coming to my office asking me what's wrong.
- Hinducow28, on 02/12/2009, -0/+5"Hmm, I have a headache so therefore I must have a brain tumor."
- J0hnnyBlaze, on 02/12/2009, -2/+7I've been saying for years that you can generally figure out your problems on your own through internet md websites. It's like going to the doctor but cheaper, faster, and more opinions.
you just have to take it with a grain of salt (you probably arent dying), and use multiple opinions.
on a side note, I'm convinced that this is what doctors check on when they tell you to wait and leave the room for awhile - pegothejerk, on 02/12/2009, -0/+4Yeah, there's no way THIS can go wrong. Hey.. anyone want to start a "fill your own prescription" website? Perhaps we could just list all the symptoms of dying in general and target our adverts at agoraphobics.
- guyincognitoo, on 02/12/2009, -0/+4It's never lupus.
- firesights, on 02/12/2009, -2/+6Roses are red
Violets are blue
In Soviet Russia
Poem write you - du1834, on 02/12/2009, -1/+4Each of the doctors I have met with respond to just about every visit with "take this antibiotic and call me Wednesday if you're not dead." Most people wouldn't even go to a doctor if the government had not made it mandatory to get prescriptions from them before buying medicine.
- hawksfan03, on 02/12/2009, -0/+3dugg for linking to the print page and not the regular article where we'd have to click through 5 pages
- stevensj2, on 02/12/2009, -0/+3That's the honest truth. I entered some symptoms recently, and the first things on the list were Tuberculosis and Pneumonia.
Turns out, it was the common cold.
My advice: if you're in good enough health to search things on the internet, use that energy to go to an appointment. If you're health keeps you from the internet...hey, how are you reading my comment..what's..wh..
ALL HAIL HYPNO-TOAD! - Kazimieras, on 02/12/2009, -2/+5And more pointedly, most people cannot describe symptoms accurately enough if they wanted to (or they may be asymptomatic)
- ebcreasoner, on 02/12/2009, -0/+3Would you like to ford the river?
- EnergyEinstein, on 02/12/2009, -1/+4There are simple homeopathic remedies that will help with hypochondria. :)
- gcnaddict, on 02/12/2009, -3/+6No, the doctor is NEVER you unless you actually happen to have graduated as an MD. Being a doctor requires years upon years of medical education and experience unlike anything one could ever find online. Simply plugging in symptoms means nothing because symptoms can always be interpreted differently.
Symptom checkers only increase the number of hypochondriacs; they don't certify doctors. - ulrichm, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2Yes. It *could* be a brain tumor and it could be something less dangerous.
Only a doctor can really say if you have a tumor or not. - ulrichm, on 02/12/2009, -1/+3100% Agree
- ZIRCHxWORLD, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2doctors being outsourced to the internet? oh snap!
- inactive, on 02/12/2009, -2/+4The doctor.... is........ ..... . ................ . . . . . . . . . . .......... . . . . . . . ............................... . . . .... . . .. . . . . .......................YOU!
- DrDigg, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2You are exactly right. And we are not doing a good job safeguarding our roles and responsibilities.
- DrDigg, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2It's lupus
- DrDigg, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2Except that one time
- reeds1999, on 02/13/2009, -0/+2The money grubbing health "care" industry has a lot to do with this. It is all some people can afford!
- nipterink, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2yeah. in the end i know i'm not going to go to the doctor, might as well pretend i'm one.
although, last i checked i have gastritis. - cycleplus, on 02/12/2009, -0/+2oh hai, you have teh aidz lol
- mbparks2, on 02/12/2009, -1/+3It seems the medical profession is beginning to feel the pains that the engineering profession has had for many years, if not decades. Some people believe that if they have access to tools of a profession that alone makes them qualified. It is not the ability alone that makes one a doctor or engineer it is also the complex issues such as educational credentials, insurance, licensing and accountability to public safety. Picking up a textbook and reading it doesn't make you qualified. I do hope the medical profession has a better time at safeguarding its roles and responsibilities than licensed, professional engineers have had.
- Gnikcjack, on 02/13/2009, -0/+1Do you have any idea how incredibly complex the human body is? I'm not so sure you do...
- inactive, on 02/13/2009, -0/+1The problem is, to properly utilize these websites you have possess each of these three things:
1) a moderate amount of intelligence 2) common sense 3) and not being one who is prone to hypochondria or extreme gullibility
Unfortunately, most people on the internet lack at least one of these three traits, and regardless these websites are not always going to be accurate. Of course if you're ill enough and have common sense you'll see a qualified medical professional without having to consult a website first. If you're intelligent enough, conducting adequate research into your symptoms may provide you with the information you need to properly diagnose yourself prior to seeking medical treatment and possibly provide relief of your symptoms prior to seeking treatment, which is something you would eventually want to do anyway if the symptoms are severe enough, persistent, or symptomatic of a serious medical condition. If you're a hypochondriac or can't distinguish factual inaccuracies from reality, you should pretty much avoid these websites altogether.
Bottom line: Web sites are not a substitute for legitimate medical treatment. If for some reason you don't currently have medical insurance or can't afford medical treatment, there are always clinics you can utilize as an alternative. - insinuate, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1FTA: "And, people being people, you'll probably focus on the worst-sounding ailment and decide it's what you have"
Am I the only one out there who thinks "people being people" is the most retarded statement ever? It explains nothing, absolutely nothing. - Gnikcjack, on 02/13/2009, -0/+1Most people don't go to the doctor now. That's why little things like diabetes, obesity, and heart conditions don't get taken care of, and we end up paying a ***** of money to save people like you from the brink. Stop straining the system with your BS.
- inactive, on 02/12/2009, -1/+2Symptoms of dying? You should really see your doctor if you have those.
- akula89, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1dugg for Catfish Sting
- EnergyEinstein, on 02/12/2009, -1/+2You must not live in Zombieville like lead2thehead..
- carlosos, on 02/13/2009, -0/+1Doesn't that already exist?
I read about a website like that where a doctor was on the other end and like these symptom checkers it narrowed down the symptom and the doctor/website could write you the prescription.
Some remote doctor law was/is used that was supposed to help people that can't leave the house or the doctor is to far away. Of course, it was supposed to be used over the phone. - pegothejerk, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1why?? I have a website.
- Coffeedemon, on 02/12/2009, -1/+2As a librarian I think these are good and bad. With the rise of google over the past decade there has been a huge increase in the amount of information available to people on any given topic. However, information literacy (the ability to define authority, accuracy, relevance, etc) hasn't necessarily kept pace. For minor things, sites like these are great. However there is a real risk (maybe not for everyone but as the number of users rises...) of people making their own wrong diagnosis and forgoing a trip to an expert.
- LilJimmyNordin, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1I DO NOT HAVE AIDS!!!
- guyincognitoo, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1No, they check things like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Harrisons-Principles-Interna ...
http://www.amazon.com/Textbook-Medicine-Continuall ...
If the Doctor is halfway decent, he will have most of it memorized. There is nothing wrong with checking to make sure, but you need to have a good idea of what it is wrong first. - DrDigg, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1It's not a tumor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xqZnmESuiw&fea ... - inchrnt, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1I wish it worked, but it doesn't.
- du1834, on 02/18/2009, -0/+1Right...I'm sure yu will simply die of nothing.
- wassim2k, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1don't you hate it when they do that?
- du1834, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1...said the doctor.
- cycleplus, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1all your aids are belong to us
- inactive, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1Apparently I'm the only one seeing the annoying, inherent stupidity in it
- LilJimmyNordin, on 02/12/2009, -0/+1I had the flu once, cold sweats, aching and whatnot. The internet told me it was AIDS. I was so freaked out that I nearly lost my mind. Since then, AIDS has come up on every goddamned list those Web MDs have given me, no matter what symptoms I entered. I do not have AIDS. These things are useless and usually only add stress to the list of problems you may be having.
- inactive, on 02/12/2009, -1/+2Accuracy?
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