title: [How people use the internet to find information on medicines?].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantify and characterize the use of the Internet to search for information about medicines.
  
  
  METHODS
  A random sample of subjects was interviewed in the city of Bordeaux (France) in November 2012 regarding their use of the Internet to find information on medicines.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 103 interviewed subjects (median age: 38 years; 53.4% of men), 48 (46.6%) reported using the Internet to find information about medicines (58.3% of women). Two-thirds (66.7%) declared visiting consumer forums. However, nearly 60% reported to first consult a health professional. Three subjects had already bought medicines on the web and half (52.0%) of those who never made a purchase on the Internet would not trust the quality of the medicine.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Even if purchasing medicines on the web remains rare, this media is frequently used to find information on medicines and most often on websites of questionable quality.
authors.affiliation: Centre hospitalier universitaire, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Amandine
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gouverneur
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Hames
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bourenane
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Daguerre
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Devarieux
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Malifarge
authors.affiliation: Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Pauline
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Durieu du Pradel
authors.affiliation: Centre hospitalier universitaire, Bordeaux, France - INSERM, U657, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Haramburu
authors.affiliation: Centre hospitalier universitaire, Bordeaux, France - INSERM, U657, Bordeaux, France.
authors.forename: Pernelle
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Noize
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004346:Drug Information Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005602:France; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D064878:Web Browser / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult