Would you trust a man with a three-legged cat for advice on pet care? The brains behind Vetsearch seem to think you will. OK, so maybe it wasn't the man's fault the cat lost its leg, but I can't find a single reason to trust his advice--or anyone else's at Vetsearch. It's not written by veterinarians, it's not backed by any veterinary associations, and frankly, animated GIFs of puppies with wagging tails don't inspire my confidence. You can also search for a vet hospital in your area, but the site doesn't offer any more information than your local yellow pages would. - Katherine Clary Alward
While sitting in the hospital waiting room you notice the wall of brochures pertaining to everything from hemorrhoids to heart attacks to--that's kind of what the NOAH site is like. It's a menu-driven, browsable database of largely derivative articles aimed directly at the health consumer, updated periodically, and presented in English and Spanish. Sexy it's not. The site covers about 15 major topics and emphasizes resources available in New York State. I recommend it as a good starting place for the health care consumer to access information on wellness and common diseases. - Steve LeVine
Acknowledging that the very private trauma of loss and grief can be ameliorated by sharing experiences, this non-profit organization seeks to conjoin support groups, individual memorials, and grief-related Internet newsgroups. Families and friends of the victims of TWA Flight 800, the Oklahoma City bombing, and other disasters can find common emotional ground here. Visitors can post a testimonial, find help dealing with a lost pet, or read an inspirational poem. Some of the stories recounted are bound to give even the most lightly burdened among us a sense of the ephemeral nature of life, its cruel and sudden privations, and the solace available in mutual support. - Steve LeVine
Despite the hokey name, this site is a prime place to peruse the latest news about efforts to reduce the harm associated with smoking, alcohol, and illicit drugs. The news feature is excellent, collating current articles on a variety of subjects, such as the medical marijuana controversy, U.S. certification of Mexico as a bona fide drug foe, and the politics of drug testing in prisons. The Community Exchange section helps local and national organizers pool their collective efforts to curtail the impact of alcohol and drugs. Much of the site's articles are archived by topic, and the discussions employ fairly technical language. At the moment, the files seem to be largely maintained by a gopher server, making for a rather academic interface, but the content is both broad in scope and replete with useful information for clinicians, parents, persons in recovery, community activists, and policymakers. - Steve LeVine
As universities and health maintenance organizations become more sophisticated about the myriad online resources available, the quality of their Web sites continues to improve. A good example of this trend is the Virtual Hospital, from the University of Iowa. For the consumer, this site offers an online version of something called the Iowa Health Book, which organizes health topics by medical department and physiological system. For students or practitioners, the multimedia textbooks are a fun, self-paced way to learn or review a plethora of clinical subjects. I particularly enjoyed the radiology-oriented, clinico-pathological cases and some of the 3D reconstruction goodies. Bypass the pesky admissions process and go directly to med school online! - Steve LeVine
Before the Food and Drug Administration will approve any new medication for use in treating humans, pharmaceutical companies are required by law to go through a long process. One of the final steps required to gain FDA approval is a clinical trial, where a number of patients consent to receive and use the medication under tightly controlled circumstances, and where half of the participants are given placebos instead of real medicine. Here you'll find details on clinical trials currently underway for promising treatments for STDs, congenital conditions, cancers, infectious diseases, immunological vulnerabilities, and about a dozen other broad categories of ailments. - Gary Barker
Talaria provides a wealth of resources for anyone enduring and trying to manage the pain associated with cancer. The good news is that most cancer pain is manageable; the bad news is that some pain cannot be managed. This site, which makes heavy use of Frames, contains a reference list; QuickTime clips; links to more than 20 related sites; a Java-based calculator (requiring a larger-than-average monitor) for tracking medicine dosages, types and "administration routes"; and a search engine; plus some very technical and intimidating charts, graphs, and tables. Talaria has credibility in abundance and the purest of motives, but it seems to assume that everyone with cancer has attended medical school. This assumption will discourage many of those who could use this information most. - Gary Barker
Oh, the fun that could have been had here with animations and Shockwave. But no. This site's main goals are to track outbreaks of head lice and scabies nationwide, provide information to parents and teachers, and limit the exposure of children to dangerous pesticides. Many parents believe the only way to resolve such contagious infestations is by exposing their kids to incredibly toxic chemicals, and at least one book instructs parents with infected children to treat them with pesticides from Mexico that have been banned in the U.S. No, no, no. Stop. Bad. Pouring dangerous chemicals all over your child is not a good idea. It's sad that another national organization had to be formed to protect children from their parents. - Gary Barker
Most people probably think the American Lung Association exists just to eliminate cigarettes from the universe. Actually, the ALA is involved in fighting pretty much everything that impedes easy breathing, including tobacco, asthma, and environmental pollution. Lung disease is responsible for one in every seven deaths in the U.S., and more than 28 million Americans are living with chronic lung disease, so the ALA's mission is a big one. Here you can learn about the factors affecting our ability to breathe (sort of important, you might agree) and about the ALA's efforts to make that process run a little more smoothly. This site has strong design and clearly organized information. - Gary Barker