Google has revealed that topics dealing with health conditions are by far among the most popular items users search for.
Earlier this year, Google launched a new feature designed to deliver enhanced results for users who search for health-related topics. Users searching for certain diseases would see a separate box that pops up on the right side of the search results, making it faster for them to see at a glance the most important details of a disease, such as its symptoms and treatments.
At launch, Google was able to provide enhanced search results for 400 various conditions. The latest update stretches the number further, allowing Google to deliver better results on more than 900 conditions.
"In early August, New York City saw an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease, a very rare and sometimes deadly form of pneumonia," wrote Prem Ramaswami, Product Manager of Google Inside Search, in a blog post. "As more outbreaks came to light, Google searches for Legionnaires' disease spiked over 1,000 percent. People wanted to know what this disease is, why it's spreading and how to prevent it. So we quickly updated our health conditions feature (first launched last February) to provide information on Legionnaires' right up front, from a simple search."
The updated search is now rolling out to users who should be able to notice the broader scope in the next couple of weeks. Details such as treatments, symptoms, prevalence and more are all viewable in a single glance. The update also comes with a number of design improvements and enhanced results for specifically searched items. For instance, ifa user searches for "pink eye symptoms," he will be directed straight to the corresponding tab.
Perhaps the biggest change, however, is ability for users to download a PDF of their searches and print the information so they can bring it along when they see a doctor. This feature is one of the most requested feature by medical professionals, says Google.
Google has also worked with the Mayo Clinic and a team of medical professionals to come up with the most relevant and valid information in its search results. The company reiterates that the feature is solely for gathering information and not for diagnosing patients or giving medical advice.
Currently, the feature is available in U.S. English although Google promises to expand it to cover more languages and make it available to more regions.
