Sammanfattning
International studies show that information found on the Internet influences the choices subsequently made by patients. At the clinic we are also confronted to an increasing extent with information patients have found on the Internet. The purpose of this study is to examine rheumatoid arthritis (RA)-patients' use of, and attitude to, the Internet.
Method: 150 ambulant RA-patients (35 men, 115 women) completed a questionnaire about the way they use the Internet. Response percentage 100.
Result: 90 (60 %) (26 men, 64 women) use the Internet to search for information related to their illness. Men are significantly more regular users of the Internet than women (p
The most frequently searched topics are: medicine, the future, illness, diet, sexuality and exercise.
Conclusion: More than half RA-patients search for information about illness, treatment and topics related to everyday life. Exactly what the patients need to know and what they expect in the way of information from health professionals requires a more in-depth, more qualitative study method.