By KATIE WONG HOY

More and more Australians are self-diagnosing their ailments on the Internet leading to such dangers as potential misdiagnosis and increased anxiety.

To most it seems innocent enough, but general practitioner at Apple Tree Medical Dr Liz Chappel said self-diagnosing online could cause significant problems.

“When people google, one simple symptom can give you a multitude of answers and they don’t have any experience as to what might be the most likely cause of their problem,” Dr Chappel said.

“You’ll type in something like tiredness and come up with three billion reasons why you might feel tired and because it is human nature, you will always pick on the one that is the worst-case scenario.”

Self-diagnosing on the internet has become such a common phenomenon in recent times that it has its own term: cyberchondria.

A 2012 survey by health insurance company Bupa showed almost half of the Australian population self-diagnosed online. This makes Australia one of the leading countries in online self-diagnosis.

Monash University student  Holly Pascoe, a confessed cyberchondriac, said Dr Google had its advantages.

“Sometimes it is quicker and easier than going to the doctor … If you are thinking about it logically, you can make an informed decision about what might be wrong with you,” she said.

But Ms Pascoe said it had not always been a helpful diagnostic tool in her experience and had often made her more anxious.

“It’s usually fear-inducing … One time I had a very itchy eye and I googled it and it said it was eye cancer.”

Self-diagnosing online can prevent the patient from seeking appropriate medical treatment.

“Sometimes they will delay coming in because they really don’t want to face the truth of what they think is their problem,” Dr Chappel said.

“People come in terrified that they are going to die tomorrow. I do think it has a negative effect… You sometimes have to reassure people that really what they have is a cold and not whatever they perceive they have got.”

Another Google patient, freelance journalist Amy Stewart, said she had a more positive experience with self-diagnosis online.

After her first overseas flight, Ms Stewart had constant motion sickness.

She visited medical professionals but was not able to get the answers she wanted, so she took to the Internet to find out why she was feeling so ill.

“I had been to a couple of doctors already and no one had given me any answers and I felt like they thought I was making it up,” Ms Stewart said.

“Basically I googled my symptoms and the thing that came up was a syndrome called Mal de debarquement syndrome.”

Through her online research, Ms Stewart contacted a neurologist in America and started seeing a naturopath. Today her life is much better.

“I still have it (Mal de debarquement syndrome) but it’s nowhere near as bad as when I first got it. I am probably more wary about doctors and medication ... that whole journey was a really good learning curve in my wellbeing and health,” she said.

Self-diagnosing online seems to have its merits and its dangers but, either way, Dr Chappel urged people to see their healthcare professional for a second opinion.

“It’s not all negative. Sometimes it kind of stimulates me to think let’s explore that a little bit more. I think it’s challenging,” Dr Chappel said.

“[But] You can’t diagnose without taking a history and examining somebody and then taking tests. It’s impossible.”