Background: Both healthy and sick people increasingly use electronic media to obtain medical information and advice. For example, Internet users may send requests to Web-based expert forums, or so-called “ask the doctor” services. Objective: To automatically classify lay requests to an Internet medical expert forum using a combination of different text-mining strategies. Methods: We first manually classified a sample of 988 requests directed to a involuntary childlessness forum on...

Background: The quality of physician-patient communication is a critical factor influencing treatment outcomes and patient satisfaction with care. To date, there is little research to document the effect of telemedicine (TM) on physician-patient communication. Objective: The objectives of this study are to measure and describe verbal and nonverbal communication during clinical TM consultations and to compare TM with in-person (IP) consultations in terms of the quality of physician-patient...

Background: Internet peer support groups for depression are becoming popular and could be affected by an increasing number of social network services (SNSs). However, little is known about participant characteristics, social relationships in SNSs, and the reasons for usage. In addition, the effects of SNS participation on people with depression are rather unknown. Objective: The aim was to explore the potential benefits and harms of an SNS for depression based on a concurrent triangulation...

Background: The advent of Internet-based self-help systems for common mental disorders has generated a need for quick ways to triage would-be users to systems appropriate for their disorders. This need can be met by using brief online screening questionnaires, which can also be quickly used to screen patients prior to consultation with a GP. Objective: To test and enhance the validity of the Web Screening Questionnaire (WSQ) to screen for: depressive disorder, alcohol abuse/dependence, GAD,...

Background: Internet and computer use are increasingly common leisure-time sedentary behaviors, which have the potential to impact negatively on health outcomes. However, little is known about the extent to which adults’ Internet and computer use is associated with weight status and time spent in leisure-time physical activity. Objective: The objective is to examine associations of leisure-time Internet and computer use with overweight and obesity, leisure-time physical activity, and...

Background: Effective interventions are needed to reduce the chronic disease epidemic. The Internet has the potential to provide large populations with individual advice at relatively low cost. Objective: The focus of the study was the Web-based tailored physical activity intervention Active-online. The main research questions were (1) How effective is Active-online, compared to a nontailored website, in increasing self-reported and objectively measured physical activity levels in the general...

Background: Inactive people are often not aware of the fact that they are insufficiently active. Providing insight into their actual physical activity (PA) levels may raise awareness and could, in combination with tailored PA advice, stimulate a physically active lifestyle. Objective: This study evaluated the feasibility and effectiveness of a 3-month intervention in which Dutch office workers were provided with a personal activity monitor (PAM) coupled to simple and concise Web-based...

Background: In November 2006, an email-based health promotion program for pregnant women was implemented nationally in the Netherlands. The program consisted of emails containing quizzes with pregnancy-related questions tailored to the number of weeks of pregnancy. Emails were sent out once every 4 weeks, up to a maximum of nine emails. Objectives: The aims of the study were (1) to assess the recruitment of participants and their representativeness of the Dutch population and (2) to study...

Background: Internet-based cancer risk assessment tools have the potential to inform the public about cancer risk and promote risk-reducing behaviors. However, poorly communicated information on these websites may result in unintended adverse health outcomes. Objective: This study examined whether: (1) Internet-based cancer risk assessment tools use risk communication formats that facilitate comprehension and reduce bias (as identified by the empirical literature); (2) the use of these...

Background: Selecting the right mix of stationary and mobile computing devices is a significant challenge for system planners and implementers. There is very limited research evidence upon which to base such decisions. Objective: We aimed to investigate the relationships between clinician role, clinical task, and selection of a computer hardware device in hospital wards. Methods: Twenty-seven nurses and eight doctors were observed for a total of 80 hours as they used a range of computing...

Background: In many countries, there has been substantial progress in establishing the electronic transmission of patients’ health information between health care providers, but little is known about how best to engage patients in the process. Objective: We explored patients’ views about sharing of electronic health information and their preferences for learning about and participating in this process. Methods: Patients in one Massachusetts community in the northeastern United...

Background: The ability to generate registries of patients with particular clinical attributes, such as diagnoses or medications taken, is central to measuring and improving the quality of health care. However, it is not known how many providers have the ability to generate such registries. Objectives: To assess the proportion of physician practices that can construct registries of patients with specific diagnoses, laboratory results, or medications, and to determine the relationship...

Background: Retrospectively collected data about the development and maintenance of behaviors that impact health are a valuable source of information. Establishing the reliability of retrospective measures is a necessary step in determining the utility of that methodology and in studying behaviors in the context of risk and protective factors. Objective: The goal of this study was to examine the reliability of self-report of a specific health-affecting behavior, tobacco use, and its...

Background: Telemonitoring of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) is an emerging concept to detect early warning signs of impending acute decompensation in order to prevent hospitalization. Objective: The goal of the MOBIle TELemonitoring in Heart Failure Patients Study (MOBITEL) was to evaluate the impact of home-based telemonitoring using Internet and mobile phone technology on the outcome of heart failure patients after an episode of acute decompensation. Methods: Patients were...

Background: Internet sites typically contain visual design elements that are unrelated to the quality of the health information presented but that could influence credibility judgments and responses to health advice. To assess the effects of such design elements, or credibility cues, experimentally, we exposed women with different levels of weekly alcohol consumption to a website containing high quality but unpalatable information about a related health risk (breast cancer). The information...

Background: Web-based behavioral programs efficiently disseminate health information to a broad population, and online tailoring may increase their effectiveness. While the number of Internet-based behavioral interventions has grown in the last several years, additional information is needed to understand the characteristics of subjects who enroll in these interventions, relative to those subjects who are invited to enroll. Objective: The aim of the study was to compare the characteristics...

Background: Survivorship care plans have been recommended by the Institute of Medicine for all cancer survivors. We implemented an Internet-based tool for creation of individualized survivorship care plans. To our knowledge, this is the first tool of this type to be designed and made publicly accessible. Objective: To investigate patterns of use and satisfaction with an Internet-based tool for creation of survivorship care plans. Methods: OncoLife, an Internet-based...

Background: Internet support groups (ISGs) enable individuals with specific health problems to readily communicate online. Peer support has been postulated to improve mental health, including depression, through the provision of social support. Given the growing role of ISGs for both users with depression and those with a physical disorder, there is a need to evaluate the evidence concerning the efficacy of ISGs in reducing depressive symptoms. Objective: The objective was to systematically...

Background: Internet support groups (ISGs) are a popular means by which consumers with depression communicate online. A number of studies have evaluated the nature and impact of depression-specific ISGs. However, to date there have been no published systematic reviews of this evidence. Objective: The aim was to systematically identify and summarize the available evidence concerning the scope and findings of studies of depression ISGs. Methods: Three databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Cochrane)...