Mifepristone on the (mis?)information superhighway. (FYI).

Women who search the Web to learn about medical abortion using mifepristone may not get a complete, objective picture, according to a review of 40 consumer-oriented Web sites providing detailed information about the procedure. (1) Regardless of whether the sites favor medical abortion (15 sites), oppose it (16) or take no obvious stance (nine), fewer than four in five note an author's name, fewer than three in five state an academic or professional affiliation, and no more than half provide references for the information they present. The majority of sites, irrespective of ideology, explain mifepristone's mode of action (87-94%) and efficiency (78-94%), and discuss the pain and bleeding associated with the procedure (67-81%). However, a significantly higher proportion of those that support medical abortion than of those that oppose it provide links to sites with additional information (60% vs. 19%). And considerably higher proportions of opposing than supporting sites include incorrect information (56% vs. 7%) or graphic descriptions apparently intended to dissuade women from undergoing medical abortion (31% vs. 0%). These findings, the investigators observe, reinforce the need for "quality control of medical information on the Internet."

(1.) Mashiach RM, Seidman GI and Seidman DS, Use of mifepristone as an example of conflicting and misleading medical information on the Internet, BJOG, 2002, 109(4):437-442.