Skin Diseases Top Online Health Searches

Online Health Searches: Skin Diseases Lead the Way Millions of people worldwide use the internet, an endless source of information, to research health matters, investigating diseases based on symptoms. Operating on this insight, DoktorTakvimi, the largest online health service provider in its field, prepared the 2021 "Turkey's Online Health Search Report," revealing the most searched-for diseases on the internet. According to the report, skin diseases, allergies, and moles were the most searched topics in 2021, respectively.

Access to These Statistics Is Now Easier Than Ever

Technology and internet usage are growing every day worldwide. According to We Are Social's January 2021 report, there are 4.66 billion internet users, 5.22 billion telephone users, and 4.2 billion active social media users globally. The situation in Turkey is progressing in parallel with the world. According to TÜİK's Household Information Technologies Usage Survey, as of 2021, 92% of households can access the internet. According to We Are Social's 2021 report, the main reason individuals are online is information research at a rate of 63%. That is, nearly two-thirds of internet users worldwide use the internet to find information. According to the results of the Internet and Television Health Information Search Behavior and Related Factors research, 95.37% of active internet users conduct health research on the internet. Globally, health-related research comprises 4.5% of daily internet searches.

The Report Shows Which Disease Was Searched in Which Region

Within this framework, DoktorTakvimi, the largest online health service provider in its field, prepared the 2021 Turkey Online Health Search Report. Based on 39 million 129 thousand 386 users and over 59 million sessions opened by DoktorTakvimi in 2021, the report revealed which diseases were most searched for on the internet and how these searches shaped according to cities and geographic regions.

Most Searches Were in the Dermatology Field

In 2021, skin diseases ranked first in the most searched diseases and symptoms at 18.8%. Allergies came in second place at 13.8%, and moles ranked third at 13%. The top three were followed by the following searches: Hemorrhoids at 10.3%, pediatric orthopedics at 9.3%, herniated disc at 7.6%, high-risk pregnancy at 7.2%, varicose veins at 6.8%, gynecological conditions at 6.7%, and rheumatoid arthritis at 6%. The dermatology field accounted for 32.2% of searches combined through skin diseases and mole categories; gynecology and obstetrics accounted for 13.9% through searches related to high-risk pregnancy and gynecological conditions.

Istanbul Residents Conducted the Most Health Searches

Istanbul had the highest number of users conducting health searches at 22.06%, followed by Ankara at 15.10% and İzmir at 8.49%. When examined by province, the ranking of most searched diseases and symptoms in Ankara, Istanbul, and İzmir included skin diseases, pediatric orthopedic conditions, and following hemorrhoids: hair loss, moles, herniated disc, obsessive-compulsive disorder, varicose veins, gynecological conditions, and rheumatoid arthritis.

Black Sea and Southeast Residents Searched for Allergies, Mediterranean Residents for Moles

The report from DoktorTakvimi.com, the largest online health service provider in its field, also revealed regional patterns among those actively conducting health searches online. By geographic region, the Marmara region led health searches at 31.9%, followed by Central Anatolia at 28%, and the Aegean at 13.2%. Eastern Anatolia came last at 2.36%. In the Marmara Region, searches for pediatric orthopedic conditions and allergies most commonly followed skin diseases. In Central Anatolia, moles and hemorrhoids followed skin diseases, while in the Aegean, allergies and moles followed. When examining the most searched diseases and symptoms by geographic region, skin diseases ranked in the top 3 in every region. In the Marmara, Aegean, Central Anatolia, and Eastern regions, skin diseases were the most searched topic; in the Black Sea and Southeast Anatolia regions, allergies were most searched. In the Mediterranean region, moles, a type of skin disease, were searched.