Medical Blogs by David Stewart
Methodology: I took MedGadget’s (the internet journal of emerging medical technologies) 2007 MedBlog awards page and looked at all of the nominated sites (@100 unique sites). I immediately eliminated any blogs that were outside of the U.S. and blogs that were exclusively written for other physicians, medical students, or nurses. I evaluated the consumer-oriented blogs by noting who wrote them, what their coverage was and whether the blogs contained advertisements. Coverage info was gathered from the blog’s subjects over several months. I have listed the ones I found to be of interest below with their urls in case anyone would like to view them for themselves. The order in which I have placed them is alphabetical; I made no attempt to rank the ones I found to be of the most interest but I have included my reasons about each one to assist your evaluation.
Aetiology http://scienceblogs.com/aetiology/
Focus: epidemiology
Hosted by: Tara C. Smith, PhD in microbial pathogenesis
Coverage: general epidemiology, vaccines medicine, public health, pseudoscience, and health care policies.
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: although not written specifically for consumers this blog provides thoughtful analyses of current health news from a scientific perspective
Belaray Dermatology http://www.belaray.com/blog
Focus: dermatology
Hosted by: Jeffrey Ellis, MD and Amy Sleer, MD
Coverage: skin cancers, skin care, online store selling protective clothing, sun block.
Advertisements: no ads bur several blog messages discuss specific commercial products
David’s reasoning: even though this blog is from a clinic directed to that clinic’s patients, I felt the topics and the quality of the information in those topics would be of broader interest than just to the patients of the Belaray Clinic
Brass and Ivory http://brassandivory.blogspot.com
Focus: healthcare, public policy, multiple sclerosis
Hosted by: Lisa Emrich
Coverage: mental illness and depression, MS, list of other health and medical blogs
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: patient blogs make me wary but this one seems to speak directly and truthfully about what it is like to have MS so I thought it would be of value to other MS patients
Corazon Hispano http://www.corazonhispano.blogspot.com/
Focus: cardiology information for Spanish speaking patients
Hosted by: Juan J. Rivera, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Coverage: Spanish language medical web sites, doctor-patient communication, infectious diseases, tropical diseases, childhood obesity, nutrition
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: even though I don’t read Spanish a blog written by a physician
for Spanish speaking patients is too good to pass up
Diabetes Mine http://diabetesmine.com/
Focus: living with diabetes
Hosted by: Amy Tenderich, diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at age 37
Coverage: anything related to diabetes, patient advocacy
Advertisements: Yes
David’s reasoning: another patient blog that has won several awards and again I think provides useful and pertinent information for the diabetic patient
Doctor David’s Blog http://doctordavidsblog.blogspot.com
Focus: pediatric oncology
Hosted by: David Loeb, MD
Coverage: cancer research, cancer treatments, pain management
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: good information on topical medical news from a physician’s perspective
Dr. Shock MD Phd http://www.shockmd.com/
Focus: electroconvulsive therapy
Hosted by: anonymous physician from the Netherlands
Coverage: depression, psychiatry, neuroscience
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: I know I said I didn’t include anything written outside of the US but just take a look at the past posts listed under ’Categories’ (located on the right-hand side of the page in the gray column) and tell me I was wrong in including this site
Everything Health http://www.everythinghealth.net/
Focus: medical issues related to a healthy life and longevity
Hosted by: Toni Brayer, MD
Coverage: genes, omega 3 FFA, medical tests, reducing stress, antibiotics
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: more helpful health and medical news information explained in easy-to-understand terms by a physician
Finding Optimism http://www.findingoptimism.com/
Focus: mental illness
Hosted by: James Bishop, patient with bipolar disorder
Coverage: allergies, mental illness, caregiver information, exercise, wellness, nutrition, sleep and relaxation
Advertisements: yes - ads are for the bloggers’ own software that helps the patient monitor depression
David’s reasoning: another patient’s blog but the topics are presented in a very even-handed and temperate manner, no soapboxes here
In Sickness and In Health http://insicknessinhealth.blogspot.com
Focus: “couples going through an illness experience”
Hosted by: Barbara Kivowitz, consultant, ex-psychotherapist
Coverage: Alzheimer’s, caregivers, chronic illness, finances, care management
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: another patient blog but written with objectivity yet not without passion which I think fellow suffers would find helpful
InsureBlog http://insureblog.blogspot.com/
Focus: health insurance
Hosted by: Mike Feehan (Human Resources), Bob Vineyard (CLU Consulting), William Halper (Insurance Broker – Employee Benefits), H.G. Stern (Benefits Specialist)
Coverage: health insurance, health benefits
Advertisements: yes
David’s reasoning: what I like about this site is that they post to stories from the NYTimes and Wall Street Journal and have a lengthy list of other blogs dealing with insurance and taxes as well as related web sites
The Derm Blog http://thedermblog.com
Focus: dermatology
Hosted by: Jeffrey Benabio, MD
Coverage: skin care, health and beauty, skin cancer, nail care
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: skin care information from a Wake Forest graduate, the last word in quality J
The Fitness Fixer http://www.healthline.com/blogs/exercise_fitness
Focus: fitness
Hosted by: Julie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM
Coverage: fitness, osteoporosis, nutrition, stress, yoga
Advertisements: yes
David’s reasoning: very good expert information in a subject area frequently habituated by charlatans and quacks
Women’s Health News http://womenshealthnews.wordpress.com
Focus: “current women’s health topics including policy, legislation, news, and events …”
Hosted by: Rachel Walden, MLIS at Vanderbilt University
Coverage: abortion, abuse, rape & safety, body image and eating disorders, cancer, HPV, infectious diseases, pregnancy
Advertisements: none
David’s reasoning: a blog hosted by a librarian, do I need to say more about quality?