Correlating Cyberchondria and Health Anxiety: Demographic Insights from Stable Asthma Patients

Abstract

Objective: With the increasing ubiquity of internet, the phenomenon of cyberchondria is becoming progressively widespread in today's digital society. This study investigates the correlation between health anxiety and cyberchondria severity and evaluates the influence of demographic factors in stable asthma patients. Methods: This cross-sectional study incorporated a sample of 51 patients with stable asthma. Sociodemographic data were systematically documented, and participants completed the Health Anxiety Inventory (HAI) and Cyberchondria Severity Scale-12 (CSS-12). Data analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics v.22, Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses were employed to investigate relationships between variables, and multivariate linear regression was used to identify potential predictors of health anxiety. Results: The sample primarily consisted of female (76.5%) and married (74.5%) individuals with a mean age of 41.47 years (SD:12.92). Smokers reported higher median scores in health anxiety compared to non-smokers, with a significant difference (p=0.023), while no significant difference in cyberchondria severity was seen across smoking statuses (p=0.380). A moderate positive correlation between health anxiety and cyberchondria severity scores was also identified (r=0.415, p=0.002). The regression analysis indicated that together, cyberchondria severity, smoking status, and education level accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in health anxiety scores (Adjusted R^2:0.374, p<0.001). Conclusion: The study establishes a connection between health anxiety and cyberchondria severity in patients with stable asthma. The results suggest that health interventions targeting modifiable factors could be beneficial in reducing health anxiety within this patient group.