Tamara M. Riboul

January 29, 1998

Disease and Discrimination

Prof. Kay Edwards

In this analytical review I will explore three web sites about sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). The web sites are from the Cornell University Medical College, Health Square and Non~Trivial.com. These sites provide a large amount of information on different areas of STDs. I will review the information that each site presents and compare the quality, accessibility, reliability and other aspects of the information provided.

The Cornell University Medical College web site on STDs is located at: <http://edcenter.med. cornell.edu/Pathophysiology_Cases/STDs/ STD_(01->12)html>. The site was created and is maintained by Richard B. Roberts, M.D.. The HTML was done by Christopher Chen. The information on this web site was last modified on February 20, 1996 and it was accessed on January 24, 1999. The site is organized with a presentation page that provides an overlook of all the information that is available on the site and with direct links to the specific information. The site also provides a very good introduction and epidemiology page with general information on venereal or STDs and how the increased interest has created awareness of their growing consequences in issues of health and society. It also identifies the problems and reasons for the current STDs epidemic. The information provided is precise, clear and concise allowing a quick reading and giving the reader an idea of the quality of the site. The site also contains a classification page that presents 23 STDs by their scientific and common name and classifies them by etiology, cause (bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa or ectoparasites) and the associated disease or syndrome. This page provides direct links to the individual pages of ten STDs. The individual pages provide the name, infectious agent, epidemiology, incubation period, symptoms, clinical manifestations, treatment, lesion and different classifications of the STD. On each individual page there are links to several illustrations including pictures of lesions in body parts, slides of infectious agents and x-rays that represent actual cases of the STDs. Some of the illustrations are shocking and disturbing because of their reality. This site is intended for a wide audience including students, infected people or anybody with an interest in STDs because it presents the information in a clear, simple, precise and concise way. This web site is also user friendly and can be easily accessed through a search page like I did or through the Cornell University home page. The information presented on this site is reliable but is not very accurate because the last modification was almost three years ago. Consequently, percentages and numbers may not be accountable. This web site is a very good information source on STDs but it needs to be verified and modified to include new information.

The address for the Health Square web site is <http://www.healthquare.com/ftsd. htm> and it was accessed on January 24, 1999. The information on the site is obtained from the Physician's Desk Reference Encyclopedia of Medical Care, the Family Guide to Women's Health and Prescription Drugs and Trade and to Prescription Drugs. The site has a presentation page that informs the audience of the information provided, has a list of basic facts about STDs that everyone should know for their own protection and direct links to four main pages that contain more information. The first page is titled Coming to terms with a STD and it is divided into Bacteria, Viruses and Bugs; Taking action; Common STDs; Finding the support you need and For more information, all with direct links to where the information is located on the page. This page has illustrations of infected body parts, check-up lists and self-tests for STDs. The information is well presented, giving enough details making it helpful for the audience. The second page is Facing up to STDs and is divided into Basic facts about STDs; Common STDs and Treating STDs. The following page is Patient information and it is divided in STDs; Safe Sex; Condom Use; Genital Warts; Herpes; Chlamydia Infection; Gonorrhea; Pelvic Inflammatory Disease; Syphilis; Molluscum Contagiosum and Crabs. This page is very useful because it provides additional and new information on prevention and education about STDs. The specific pages on STDs include the causes, signs/symptoms, the care needed, what to do, the risks and the tests to detect an STD. The last page is on Drug Treatments providing a wide variety of information including reason for prescription, mode of ingestion, side effects, special warnings, food and drug interactions and recommended dose on 12 different drugs used to treat STDs. This extended information on treatment drugs is important and essential to have a complete understanding and knowledge of STDs. This site is intended for everybody interested on STDs and more specifically for those looking for more detailed and broad information like treatment and prevention. The site is easily accessed and through its reading and comparison to other, the information can be said to be accurate and reliable although there is no creation or modification date.

The last page I will analyze is the Non~Trivial.com Sexually Transmitted Diseases site which address is <http://www.non-trivial.com/F_std.htm>. The site was created and is maintained by Enrico. The site was last updated on December 29, 1998 and it was accessed on January 24, 1999. This site is small compared to the other two. It provides information on circular morals, disclaimers, terminology, FDA (safe food supply) and CDC (Center for Disease Control), public issues, prevention, protection, treatment, AIDS, herpes, hygiene, safe sex, new prevention ideas, prostitution and lack of action. There is not much information on any of these areas, only a small paragraph or two. There is also a direct link to the site of an organization who cares about reproductive rights and provides full and accurate information on STDs called Planned Parenthood. This site differs from the others because it presents little biological information and focuses on the social justice aspect. This information gives the site a bigger perspective on STDs although the amount of information on these and other important issues needs to be increased and further developed. The site is designed for every audience but serves more as a starting point for those interested in several areas of STDs. The site can be accessed by a search page or through the Non~Trivial.com home page and an e-mail address is given where comments, remarks or questions about the site can be directed. The information is accurate and reliable as it was last updated a month ago.

This three sites are very good and useful sources of information about STDs but they have their flaws. The Cornell University site is very good and reliable on the biological information but it needs to be modified and to be more complete it needs to include the social justice aspect of STDs presented on the other two. The Health Square site presents a reasonably good balance between the biological and social justice aspects although the description of individual STDs needs to be improved. This site also presents significantly well the several different drug treatments available. But the site lacks a date of creation and last modification which are necessary in order to give the audience an accurate perspective of the information. The last site serves only as a starting point because it lacks depth in the information presented. But it presents more of social justice aspects of STDs than the other sites. The information on the other two sites can be used to add and complement the information provided on the third site. All three sites are accessible and are well informed sites intended for every person interested in obtaining different kinds of information about STDs. A reading of all the sites can give a adequately complete understanding and knowledge of STDs.

Roberts, Richard B. M.D. (1996). Cornell University Medical College [Online]. Available: http://edcenter.med.cornell.edu/Pathophysiology_Cases/STDs/ STD_(01->12)html [1999, January 24]

Health Square: Sexually Transmitted Disease [Online]. Available: http://www.healthquare.com/ftsd. htm [1999, January 24]

Enrico (1998). Non~Trivial.com: Sexually Transmitted Diseases [Online]. Available: http://www.non-trivial.com/F_std.htm [1999, January 24]