Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298, USA.
Health Educ Behav. 2012 Oct;39(5):583-8. doi: 10.1177/1090198111423941. Epub 2011 Oct 11.
This study explored the characteristics of colorectal cancer (CRC) patients who accessed Internet-based health information as part of their symptom appraisal process prior to consulting a health care provider.
Newly diagnosed CRC patients who experienced symptoms prior to diagnosis were interviewed. Brief COPE was used to measure patient coping. Logistic and linear regressions were used to assess Internet use and appraisal delay.
Twenty-five percent of the sample (61/242) consulted the Internet prior to visiting a health care provider. Internet use was associated with having private health insurance (odds ratio [OR] = 2.55; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.20-5.43) and experiencing elimination symptoms (OR = 1.43; 95% CI = 1.14-1.80) and was marginally associated with age (OR = 0.96; 95% CI = 0.93-0.99). Internet use was not related to delayed medical care seeking.
Internet use did not influence decisions to seek medical care. The Internet provided a preliminary information resource for individuals who experienced embarrassing CRC symptoms, had private health insurance, and were younger.
本研究探讨了在咨询医疗保健提供者之前，将互联网健康信息作为症状评估过程一部分的结直肠癌（CRC）患者的特征。
对新诊断出的 CRC 患者进行了访谈，这些患者在诊断前出现了症状。采用Brief COPE 量表来衡量患者的应对方式。采用逻辑和线性回归来评估互联网的使用和评估延迟。
在样本中，有 25%（61/242）的患者在就诊前使用互联网咨询过。互联网的使用与私人医疗保险（比值比 [OR] = 2.55；95%置信区间 [CI] = 1.20-5.43）和经历消除症状（OR = 1.43；95% CI = 1.14-1.80）有关，与年龄也有一定关联（OR = 0.96；95% CI = 0.93-0.99）。互联网的使用与延迟寻求医疗服务无关。
互联网的使用并未影响医疗服务的寻求决策。对于经历尴尬的 CRC 症状、拥有私人医疗保险且年龄较小的个人来说，互联网提供了一个初步的信息资源。
