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Potemkowski A, Brola W, Ratajczak A, et al. Internet Usage by Polish Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study. Interact J Med Res. 2019;8(1):e11146doi: 10.2196/11146.
Potemkowski, A., Brola, W., Ratajczak, A., Ratajczak, M., Zaborski, J., Jasińska, E., Pokryszko-Dragan, A., Gruszka, E., Dubik-Jezierzańska, M., Podlecka-Piętowska, A., Nojszewska, M., Gospodarczyk-Szot, K., Stępień, A., Gocyła-Dudar, K., Maciągowska-Terela, M., Wencel, J., Kaźmierski, R., Kułakowska, A., Kapica-Topczewska, K., Pawełczak, W., & Bartosik-Psujek, H. (2019). Internet Usage by Polish Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study. Interactive journal of medical research, 8(1), e11146. https://doi.org/10.2196/11146
Potemkowski, Andrzej, et al. "Internet Usage by Polish Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study." Interactive journal of medical research vol. 8,1 (2019): e11146. doi: https://doi.org/10.2196/11146
Potemkowski A, Brola W, Ratajczak A, Ratajczak M, Zaborski J, Jasińska E, Pokryszko-Dragan A, Gruszka E, Dubik-Jezierzańska M, Podlecka-Piętowska A, Nojszewska M, Gospodarczyk-Szot K, Stępień A, Gocyła-Dudar K, Maciągowska-Terela M, Wencel J, Kaźmierski R, Kułakowska A, Kapica-Topczewska K, Pawełczak W, Bartosik-Psujek H. Internet Usage by Polish Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study. Interact J Med Res. 2019 Feb 01;8(1):e11146. doi: 10.2196/11146. PMID: 30707107; PMCID: PMC6376336.
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Interact J Med Res. 2019 Feb 01;8(1):e11146. doi: 10.2196/11146.

Internet Usage by Polish Patients With Multiple Sclerosis: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study.

Interactive journal of medical research

Andrzej Potemkowski, Waldemar Brola, Anna Ratajczak, Marcin Ratajczak, Jacek Zaborski, Elżbieta Jasińska, Anna Pokryszko-Dragan, Ewa Gruszka, Marta Dubik-Jezierzańska, Aleksandra Podlecka-Piętowska, Monika Nojszewska, Krystyna Gospodarczyk-Szot, Adam Stępień, Katarzyna Gocyła-Dudar, Marzena Maciągowska-Terela, Jacek Wencel, Radosław Kaźmierski, Alina Kułakowska, Katarzyna Kapica-Topczewska, Witold Pawełczak, Halina Bartosik-Psujek

Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychoprophylaxis, University of Szczecin, Szczecin, Poland.
  2. Institute of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Jan Kochanowski University, Kielce, Poland.
  3. Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland.
  4. Clinical Trial Centre, EuroMedis, Szczecin, Poland.
  5. Department of Neurology, Specialist Hospital in Mi?dzylesie, Warsaw, Poland.
  6. Clinical Center, RESMEDICA, Kielce, Poland.
  7. Department of Neurology, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland.
  8. Outpatient MS Clinic, Lower Silesian Specialistic Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
  9. Department of Neurology, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
  10. Department of Neurology, Military Institute of Medicine, Warsaw, Poland.
  11. Department of Neurology and Cerebrovascular Disorders, L Bierkowski Hospital, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
  12. Department of Neurology, Medical University of Bia?ystok, Bia?ystok, Poland.
  13. Department of Neurology, Specialist Hospital, Kalisz, Poland.
  14. Medical Faculty, University of Rzeszów, Rzeszów, Poland.

PMID: 30707107 PMCID: PMC6376336 DOI: 10.2196/11146

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The internet is a source of knowledge and medium widely used in services that facilitate access to information and networking. Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients find the possibility of acquiring information relating to their condition particularly rewarding.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to identify Polish MS patients' preferences by analyzing a percentage of internet users and determining the most common search subjects and patients' approach to information on the internet. Disability connected with the condition, its duration, and other factors that influence patients' internet use were examined along with instances of relations established through the internet and their durability.

METHODS: The study examined 1045 patients (731 women, 314 men) treated in 10 Polish MS centers, of whom 932 (89.19%) declared to be internet users. Their average age was 40.65 (SD 11.06) and average MS duration was 9.08 (SD 6.97) years. The study used a proprietary survey on information seeking, the range of searched subjects, and internet usage frequency.

RESULTS: The majority of the patients (494/932, 53.0%) used the internet 6-7 times per week and 4.3% (40/932) declared they spent minimum 2 hours per day. The most commonly searched subjects were world news (604/932, 72.9% of patients using the internet); 60.8% (504/932) searched for information on their condition, particularly for new treatment methods (562/932, 67.8%) and the course of illness (520/932, 62.7%). One's sex had no impact on internet usage (female vs male, odds ratio [OR] 1.13, 95% CI 0.72-1.77), although a patient's age might, at varying degrees. We found several significant associations using a .05 significance level: a patient with higher education used the internet 9 times more often than one with primary education (OR 8.64, 95% CI 3.31-22.57); lasting relationships increased chances of internet usage by 10-fold compared to widowers (OR 0.12, 95% CI 0.05-0.31); living in a city with a population over 100,000 increased chances by nearly 6 times compared with the countryside (OR 5.59, 95% CI 2.72-11.48); the relapsing-remitting MS type saw a 2-fold increase compared with the primary progressive MS type (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.29-0.75); and those needing assistance were 2 times less likely to use the internet than patients who could move independently (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.31-0.89). More than half of the patients (489/932, 52.5%) did not discuss the information found on the internet with their neurologists; 15.9% (148/932) believed that relationships established through the internet can be stable.

CONCLUSIONS: The majority of Polish patients use the internet as a crucial information source on their condition and innovative treatment methods. The internet can be helpful in establishing new relationships, which are usually short-lived. Polish patients do not frequently discuss the information gathered on the internet with their doctors.

©Andrzej Potemkowski, Waldemar Brola, Anna Ratajczak, Marcin Ratajczak, Jacek Zaborski, Elżbieta Jasińska, Anna Pokryszko-Dragan, Ewa Gruszka, Marta Dubik-Jezierzańska, Aleksandra Podlecka-Piętowska, Monika Nojszewska, Krystyna Gospodarczyk-Szot, Adam Stępień, Katarzyna Gocyła-Dudar, Marzena Maciągowska-Terela, Jacek Wencel, Radosław Kaźmierski, Alina Kułakowska, Katarzyna Kapica-Topczewska, Witold Pawełczak, Halina Bartosik-Psujek. Originally published in the Interactive Journal of Medical Research (http://www.i-jmr.org/), 01.02.2019.

Keywords: doctor-patient relationship; information seeking; internet; multiple sclerosis

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