Análise de informações sobre a doença de Chagas disponíveis em websites brasileiros na rede mundial de computadores (internet)Analysis of the information on Chagas disease available through Brazilian websites on the worldwide web (internet) Observou-se que há elevados percentuais de ausência de informações referentes aos tópicos discriminados em cada um dos seis blocos de informações, e que muitos websites possuem baixa qualidade quanto aos critérios estabelecidos. Considerando que a internet é fonte de informações sobre saúde para leigos e profissionais da área médica, é necessária a criação de mecanismos de disseminação de informações corretas sobre a doença de Chagas pela web, aproveitando esta ferramenta útil para a prevenção e o controle da doença no Brasil.Palavras-chave: Doença de Chagas; internet; comunicação e divulgação científica.
AbstractAiming to investigate the quality of information on Chagas disease available on the worldwide web (internet), a survey on Brazilian websites was conducted through a search engine (Google). Thirty-seven websites with informative purposes were selected for this analysis. Using a systematized analysis form, the content of topics considered essential, such as transmission, reservoirs, control, disease, treatment and epidemiology was evaluated.The regulatory manuals of the Brazilian Ministry of Health and the scientific literature were defined as the standards for reference. Moreover, an evaluation of the quality of the selected websites was carried out, under the following criteria: accuracy, update, authoring, scientific grounding, language and interaction with the user. High percentage of lack of information related to the topics discriminated in each of the six content categories was observed and many websites were not considered of good quality. Considering that the internet is a source of information for non-experts and professionals of the medical area, it is necessary the establishment of mechanisms to disseminate the correct information about Chagas disease, using the advantage of this useful tool for prevention and control of the disease in Brazil.