Paging Dr. Google, paging Dr. Google… Johnnie needs to know right now the correct treatment for his knee pain. And he needs to find out before he leaves Starbuck’s.
With access to the internet as close as the phone in our pocket the temptation to get quick online answers to medical questions is hard to resist. I have done it myself. Although there is a lot of really good information on line, it's not all good (to say the least). That's one of the reasons our website contains links to dependable information. Many sites including our own have excellent information about the diagnosis treatment and expected outcomes of common orthopedic problems. These days one can even observe many types of surgeries online in video format on sites such as YouTube.
Another problem with looking for medical information online is that you have to ask the right questions to get the right answers. If a well meaning person searches the internet and enters a symptom that is not correct, misleading answers can follow. For example when the patient feels that their knee giving way they might be enter knee instability when really the problem might be weakness or arthritis. Another risky source of internet information are message boards. These are sites where individual patients can post their own experiences and opinions many of which may not be of value to the person searching for information. It is important when looking for information to search for plainly spoken analysis of the actual studies that pertain to the issue at hand. If you're looking for good information it will be much better for you to make a decision based on the study of several thousand patients with a condition like yours rather than one patient's personal experience.
So while I never discourage patients from seeking more information about their condition, it is very important to point them toward dependable information. For example, just the other day one patient boldly proclaimed that bursitis lasts forever. It cannot be treated. When I inquired politely why they had come to the conclusion they matter of fact way exclaimed they found it on the internet. You can imagine how relieved they were to discover this was not the case!
