Why Giving or Taking Medical Advice on Discussion Forums is Unwise. [View All]

[MineralMan]

On any Internet forum where there is a Health section, it's very common for people to ask for, receive, or post medical advice. It's usually done to try to help someone or to report on something that is a health concern from whomever posts. Most non-medical forums, however, don't allow such advice to be asked for or given. DU doesn't allow it, either. There's a good reason for that:

People with health concerns usually know their own symptoms. They're often worried and come to a familiar place to ask about those symptoms. Someone with similar symptoms might offer some sort of advice, perhaps some over-the-counter thing they took that made them feel better. Or, they may stumble on a thread that seems to be about their concern.

The problem is that a set of symptoms can fit a wide range of medical problems. For example, lower GI distress is a common issue for many people. The same symptoms, however, can be caused by a wide range of conditions, from benign and easily-corrected, to life-threatening and potentially deadly. Because of that, giving or taking advice regarding lower GI symptoms can easily lead to not getting a proper diagnosis from a medical professional. That could prove deadly, through failure to find out about something until it is too late to be taken care of. The same is true for many, many health issues.

Usually, a typical discussion forum won't have many medical professionals as members. If it does, the first thing any of them will do when they encounter a thread asking for advice is to recommend seeking medical attention from a professional in the field. They know that attempting to diagnose problems from internet posts is not only unwise, but represents a form of malpractice. Most advice offered on discussion forums is given by amateurs, not medical professionals. Either they had symptoms that were similar, know someone who did, or read something somewhere about something similar. Sometimes, the advice is based on faulty knowledge, poor memory, or on something else altogether. In all cases, however, it is given without knowledge of the actual condition that is causing the symptoms for any individual.

So, here's my advice: Don't take any medical advice from random Internet discussion forums. Don't give such advice, no matter how good your motives may be. The only medical advice that makes any sense on a non-medical discussion forum is the advice to seek professional advice from a healthcare professional. Any other advice could be worthless or even dangerous.