Quality assessment of health information on the Internet

Lynch syndrome case

Abstract

We live under the aegis of the “new information and communication technologies” (NICT): An unprecedented and pervasive reality that presents us with different virtues and problems, one of them related to the quality of information available online, especially in the health area. This article presents a methodological proposal for assessing the quality of information available on health websites. Initially, the results of some studies are exposed, indicating that official and public interest websites addressing different health problems may offer outdated, incomplete, incorrect and illegible information, although they have no intention of causing harm to users. Finally, we will use this methodology to evaluate the information offered in a case study of a specific site, aiming to improve the quality of information about Lynch Syndrome, available in this virtual environment.