The World Wide Web has a great deal to offer, but anyone can post anything there. When seeking medical information, it is important to be careful choosing a Web site. Medical information must be accurate and up-to-date to be useful.

Before using the information that you find, ask yourself a few questions about its origin:

-- What's the purpose of this site?
-- Who is the audience?
-- Are they trying to sell you something?

-- Who wrote, developed, and/or paid for the site? What qualifications/credentials do these people have?
Drug companies sponsor many medical sites. This does not mean that they are bad, but it is something to think about, especially when considering treatment options. Other sites may belong to proponents of unorthodox therapies. Think about how these may fit into your health agenda. Sites produced by medical schools, universities, and government agencies are good places to start.

-- Does the site reflect a particular opinion?
If so, do you want to explore other points-of-view to get a balanced picture?

-- Is it up to date?
Look for the date of the last revision. Medical information changes rapidly. Old information is less useful and may even be dangerous.

-- Is it accurate?
Look at the sources used.

-- Does it help answer your questions?
Be sure to check with a librarian for more information about your subject.

These Web sites are reliable sources of medical information:

Cleveland Clinic http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/default.aspx
The Cleveland Clinic offers health information, interactive quizzes, podcast, and videos as well as scheduled live chats with medical specialists.

The National Library of Medicine site http://www.nlm.nih.gov is a gateway to many health resources. For academic clinical medical journals from all over the world use PubMed http://pubmed.gov. For consumer health information in English and Spanish use MedlinePlus http://medlineplus.gov.

MedInfoRus http://medinforus.homestead.com/MedInfoRus.html
This site developed by Russian-American medical librarians provides both professional and lay medical information in Russian. It includes a Russian-language guide to searching PubMed and a Russian-language interface to Medline.

Healthfinder http://www.healthfinder.gov.
The Department of Health and Human Services produces this site for consumers with links to online publications, support groups, and other agencies. Information is also available in Spanish.

International Classification of Diseases http://icd9cm.chrisendres.com/index.php
This site offers free searches of ICD9, the International Classification of Diseases, one of the major medical coding systems used for billing and medical records.

California Nursing Home Search http://www.calnhs.org
This search offers information about choosing a nursing home, alternatives to nursing homes, the
financial aspects of long-term care, and government and other resources.

NOAH (New York Online Access to Health) http://www.noah-health.org.
This is a guide to the latest health information in English and Spanish.

National Women’s Health Center http://www.4woman.gov.
This database form the federal government provides current information about women’s health in English and Spanish.

Go Ask Alice http://www.goaskalice.columbia.edu.
Health educators from the Columbia University School of Public Health have created this excellent site with health information for young adults.

Alternative Medicine Homepage http://www.pitt.edu/~cbw/altm.html.
This is a gateway site from the Falk Library of the Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh. It provides information on alternative, complementary, innovative, and integrative therapies.

AMA Physician Select http://www.ama-assn.org/aps/amahg.htm.
This is a directory of physicians offering name, address, telephone number, education, board certification, and practice information.

Mayo Clinic Health Oasis http://www.mayoclinic.com
This site offers general health information and news from a respected clinic.

Nutrition.gov http://www.nutrition.gov.
This federal resource offers links to all government Web sites with reliable, accurate information on diet and nutrition.

Oncolink http://www.oncolink.upenn.edu.
The University of Pennsylvania Cancer Center provides cancer information and links to relevant sites.

RxList http://www.rxlist.com.
RxList lets users check the accuracy of medical advice and prescriptions. Drugs can be searched for by name, keyword, and imprint code.

HICUP http://library.med.nyu.edu/patient/hicup/.
The library of the New York University School of Medicine provides patient education and consumer health information in Chinese. All sources are reviewed by librarians and health educators.

Informed Health Online http://www.informedhealthonline.org.
This site provides information from medical schools all over the world explaining how to interpret clinical literature.

SPIRAL: Selected Patient Information Resources in Asian Languages http://www.library.tufts.edu/hsl/spiral/
This site has consumer health information in Chinese, Hmong, Khmer, Korean, Laotian, Thai, and Vietnamese.

For more assistance, visit the Science, Business and Social Science desk at the Oakland Main Library.