Salud Publica

Google is changing the way it displays search queries to pull medical facts directly into its results.

The medical information is being added to the company’s Knowledge Graph, which underpins Google’s instant search results and powers Google’s Now personal assistant and app. It will allow health questions to be answered directly, without a user having to click.

Google already does this with dictionary definitions, schedules for big sporting events and Wikipedia extracts for famous people. Knowledge Graph is essentially a built-in encyclopaedia, which pulls in facts, data and illustrations from various sources.

One in 20 searches on Google are health-related, according to the company. “We’ll show you typical symptoms and treatments, as well as details on how common the condition is – whether it’s critical, if it’s contagious, what ages it affects, and more,” said Prem Ramaswami, a product manager for Google’s search.

Via nrip

Current controversy surrounding health domains is rooted in the Internet’s growing importance as a health information source. In 2013, the International Telecommunication Union estimated that 38.8% (2.7 billion) of the world’s population used the Internet. Many of these users are seeking important health information online. In the United States, surveys report 72% of online adults accessed the Internet to find health information primarily on the subjects of diseases and treatments . Other regions, including the European Union and emerging markets, have also shown marked increases in online health information seeking and self-diagnosing behavior.

The importance of establishing an inclusive yet reliable presence for health information online is critical to future global health outcomes given the growing importance of the health Internet. However, .health and many other health-related gTLDs are now on sale to private sector entities that largely permit open and unrestricted use. Yet, the globalized nature of the Internet, the public health need for privacy, security, and quality health information, and the rapid expansion of online health technologies demonstrate a critical need to ensure proper governance of future health domains. Focusing on the public good can be a first and crucial step to ensure an accurate, reliable, and evidence-based online presence for health for this generation and the next.

Via nrip