The World's Best Medical Websites
Eli Finkelstein, MD PhD
1/13/09
Abstract: ( An evaluation of
the most worlds best English language medical websites is provided.
Websites were evaluated on the objective criteria of popularity,
completeness, and the subjective impressions of ease of navigation,
and extent of drug company advertising.
The amount of information available through search engines can be
both overwhelming and intimidating. The problem can be especially
bad for someone trying to research medical problems, conditions, or
treatment. It has been estimated that 5% of all searches on the
internet are related to health
JAMA 2004. With all the information that is available, how can
one sort through the sheer volume of information and advertising , to find authoritative
information? ForUsDocs has evaluated medical websites on criteria of
popularity, completeness, ease of navigation, and absence of drug
company advertisements. We also make specific recommendations for
consumers, patients, doctors, and other healthcare providers.
Popularity
The below tables have compiled the most popular english
language medical websites in the world. Daily visits were compiled
in 2008 using data from Alexa and statbrain. The table indicates which
resources are free and which charge for a subscription. We list the
20 most popular websites, followed by some less popular but highly
influential sites.
The Worlds Most
Popular Medical Websites
|
Site |
Visits per Day |
Description |
Link |
|
NIH |
2,378,000 |
National Institutes Of Health
Website (Alexa Rank 345) |
www.nih.gov |
|
National Library Of Medicine |
2,374,000 |
World's Largest Medical Library.
Free Online Search |
www.nlm.nih.gov |
|
PubMedCentral |
2,313,000 |
(NIH) Digital Archive Of The
World's Free Biomedical Literature |
www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov |
|
WebMD |
583,000 |
Health Resource For Healthcare
Providers and Consumers. Free |
www.webmd.com |
|
Medicine.Net |
371,000 |
Health Resource For Consumers
(WebMD) |
www.medicinenet.com |
|
Walgreens |
349,000 |
Walgreens Pharmacy Consumer
Website |
www.walgreens.com |
|
MedScape |
129,000 |
Free CME Resource For Physicians
(WebMD) |
www.medscape.com |
|
Emedicine |
127,000 |
Online Medical Textbook, Free
(WebMD) |
www.emedicine.com |
|
Centers For Disease Control |
126,000 |
US Gov Resource For ID,
occupational health. Includes MMWR |
www.cdc.gov |
|
Drugs.com |
124,000 |
Online Medication Information
For Consumers |
www.drugs.com |
|
World Health Organization |
124,000 |
United Nations Public Health Arm |
www.who.int |
|
Weight Watchers |
119,000 |
Weight Watchers Diet Website |
www.weightwatchers.com |
|
HealthGrades |
117,000 |
Rates Health Providers
(hospitals, doctors, nursing homes) $ |
www.healthgrades.com |
|
Mayo Clinic |
116,000 |
Consumer Mayo Clinic Site |
www.mayoclinic.com |
|
British Medical Journal |
105,000 |
British Medical Journal. Free |
www.bmj.com |
|
New England Journal Medicine |
100,000 |
Weekly US Medical Journal. Free
Online After 6 Months |
www.nejm.org |
|
Healthline |
99,000 |
Health Information Search Engine |
www.healthline.com |
|
Everyday Health |
96,600 |
Consumer Health resources And
Personalized Health Tools |
www.everydayhealth.com |
|
FamilyDoctor |
96,500 |
Consumer Site Of American
Academy Family Physicians |
familydoctor.org |
|
Am Academy Family Phys |
80,217 |
Professional Site Of American
Academy Family Physicians |
www.aafp.org |
|
US Hospital Comparisons |
49,000 |
Official US gov site that rates
hospitals and lists prices (Free) |
www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov |
|
American Medical Association |
48,000 |
American Medical Association.
Includes JAMA |
www.ama-assn.org |
|
UK National Health Service |
46,000 |
UK National Health Service
Portal |
www.nhs.uk |
|
|
|
|
| Less Visited, But Still
Important |
|
|
|
|
Site |
Visits per Day |
Description |
Link |
|
UpToDate |
9,550 |
Subscription Based Clinical
Resource For Physicians |
www.uptodate.com |
|
American Dental Association |
9,550 |
ADA website |
www.ada.org |
|
Lancet |
9,289 |
United Kingdom Medical Journal
Subscription Only |
www.thelancet.com |
|
Cochrane Collaboration |
9,149 |
Nonprofit Independent Reviews On
Evidence Based Medicine |
www.cochrane.org |
|
Am Academy Of Pediatrics |
8,740 |
American Academy Of Pediatrics
Website |
www.aap.org |
|
Epocrates |
8,502 |
Free Mobile PDA Drug Guide |
www.epocrates.com |
|
Am Society Of Plastic Surgeons |
8,373 |
American Society Of Plastic
Surgeons |
www.plasticsurgery.org |
|
American College Of Physicians |
7,664 |
Internal Medicine Society
Website |
www.acponline.org |
|
American College Of Radiology |
7,015 |
ACR website |
www.acr.org |
|
Amedeo |
3,634 |
Free Weekly Medical Literature
Reviews, by subject |
www.amedeo.com |
|
Am Soc of Clinical Oncology |
3,710 |
American Society Of Clinical
Oncology |
www.asco.org |
|
Am Urological Association |
3,327 |
American Urological Association |
www.auanet.org |
|
Amer Cancer Society Journal |
3,285 |
CA: A Cancer Journal For
Clinicians.
Free |
www.caonline.amcancersoc.org |
|
Am College
Obstetrics & Gyn |
3,023 |
American College Of Obstetrics &
Gynecology |
www.acog.org |
|
American Podiatric Association |
2,899 |
APMA Website |
www.apma.org |
|
Sermo |
2,165 |
US Online Physician Community |
www.sermo.com |
|
MerckMedicus |
2,120 |
Merck Site with free Merck
Manuals, Textbooks, photos |
www.merckmedicus.com |
|
American College Of Surgeons |
2,047 |
Scientific And Educational
Association Of Surgeons |
www.facs.org/ |
|
Am Ostopathic Association |
1,952 |
AOA Website |
www.osteopathic.org |
|
American Nurses Association |
1,749 |
American Nursing Association |
www.nursingworld.org |
|
Partners For Prescript Assistance |
970 |
Helps patients find private and
gov prescription assistance |
www.pparx.org |
|
|
|
|
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