Analysis of Internet sites for headache

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Medical Informatics

Background:

• The internet provides extensive information on headache for both medical professionals and patients.
• Assessing the quality and organization of this online information is crucial for its effective use.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the status and organization of headache information available on the internet as of January 2000.
• To determine the extent of online resources for headache education and management.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive search for the term 'headache' was conducted across 10 major internet search engines.
• The top 10 search results from each engine (totaling 100 web pages) were reviewed for content and organization.

Main Results:

• Searches yielded a wide range of results, from approximately 4,500 to over 500,000 web pages.
• The top-ranked web pages related to headache were found to be extensive but poorly organized.
• Significant variability in information accessibility and structure was observed across different search engines.

Conclusions:

• Internet-based information on headache is abundant but lacks organization.
• Editorial review and improved organization are necessary to enhance the utility of online headache resources for education and patient care.
• Further development is needed to create a more structured and reliable online resource for headache information.