Pregnancy and Cancer Top the List Of the Most Commonly Searched Health Conditions

Pfizer's Smoking Cessation Treatment, Chantix, Emerges as the Number One Most Frequently Searched Prescription Brand

RESTON, Va., April 10, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- comScore, Inc. , a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a listing of the 20 most commonly searched health conditions as well as the 15 most commonly searched prescription brands in February 2008. The results, from comScore's custom search capability, revealed that the terms "pregnancy" and "cancer" were the two most frequently searched conditions, garnering 8.8 million and 7.7 million search queries respectively. That five of the 20 conditions (herpes, HIV, HPV, menopause and pregnancy) relate to sexual or reproductive health may be a function of these conditions' highly personal nature and the anonymity the Internet provides.

    Most Commonly Searched Health Conditions

    February 2008

    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations

    Source: comScore, Inc.


     Search Term     Search Queries

                          (000)


    Pregnancy            8,841

    Cancer               7,718

    Flu                  1,824

    Depression           1,807

    Diabetes             1,758

    Addiction            1,407

    Herpes               1,340

    HIV                    976

    Anxiety                910

    Stroke                 872

    HPV                    861

    Bipolar                861

    Cholesterol            816

    Headache               763

    Menopause              667

    Hepatitis              614

    Arthritis              600

    ADHD                   573

    Asthma                 569

    Fibromyalgia           551

"It's not too surprising that some of the most common health conditions, such as diabetes, depression and flu, have made the list, but it's interesting that these terms generate fewer searches than significantly less prevalent conditions like cancer and pregnancy. A reason for this may be due to life-changing nature of a cancer diagnosis or a pregnancy," said Carolina Petrini, comScore senior vice president. "When facing a serious illness like cancer or after becoming pregnant or considering pregnancy, consumers often turn to the Internet to search for information and educate themselves in a private setting. comScore's findings, along with information about the search popularity of branded terms provide meaningful insights into the ways consumers use search to find health information online."

Chantix Reigns as the Most Frequently Searched Brand but Depression Drugs Dominate List.

The study also looked at the top 15 most commonly searched prescription brand name treatments and found that Pfizer's Chantix, a smoking cessation treatment, topped the list, generating more than 500,000 search queries in February 2008. Adderall (a commonly prescribed ADHD treatment) and Viagra (a popular erectile dysfunction treatment) came in a close second and third on the list, respectively.

Additionally, four of the fifteen most frequently searched prescription brands -- Cymbalta, Effexor, Lexapro, and Prozac -- are depression treatments. For patients seeking information about this highly personal condition, the Internet provides an ideal channel.

    Most Commonly Searched Prescription Brands

    February 2008

    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations

    Source: comScore, Inc.


     Brand Name    Search Queries

                       (000)


    Chantix             507

    Adderall            469

    Viagra              348

    Ambien              334

    Lexapro             274

    Effexor             264

    Cymbalta            235

    Lyrica              233

    Seroquel            198

    Lipitor             181

    Prozac              174

    Cialis              120

    Paxil               119

    Crestor             119

    Singulair           114




    Additional Insights:


    -- The top searched health condition, "pregnancy," is searched 17 times

       more often than the most popularly searched brand name, "Chantix."

    -- The second most searched term, "cancer," garnered 7.7 million search

       queries in February. Of those queries, 1 million were specific to the

       term "breast cancer."

    -- The number of searches for ADHD (573,000) was very similar to the

       number of searches for the ADHD treatment, Adderall (469,000). Because

       the popularity of condition versus brand searches differs based on

       condition, this data supports the need for marketers to evaluate their

       therapeutic area's online search landscape so they can properly

       allocate resources toward strategic, non-branded and branded search

       campaigns.

    -- A condition's prevalence is not necessarily correlated to its search

       popularity. For instance, according to data from the American Diabetes

       Association and the National Institute of Health, there are several

       million more people living in the United States with diabetes than with

       cancer. However, the number of search queries for the term "cancer"

       (7.7 million) was more than four times the number of search queries for

       the term "diabetes" (1.8 million).

    -- A comparison of the search terms "pregnancy" (which garnered 8.8

       million searches) and "cholesterol" (which garnered less than a million

       searches) revealed a similar discrepancy. In the United States,

       approximately 4 million women a year give birth (as reported by the

       American Pregnancy Association), while nearly 40 million people suffer

       from high cholesterol (as reported by the American Heart Association).

    -- Historically, awareness of Fibromyalgia -- which was the twentieth most

       popularly searched health condition -- has been low and resources have

       been scarce. However, searches for the treatment have likely grown in

       the past couple of months due to the recent approval of Pfizer's Lyrica

       as a treatment for the condition. The relatively large number of

       searches for Fibromyalgia, is likely a result of marketing around

       Lyrica which has helped to raise awareness of the condition.

About comScore Pharmaceutical Solutions

comScore Pharmaceutical Solutions delivers in-depth information needed to understand the impact that brand, condition-specific, and health portal Web sites have on consumers' brand awareness, conversion, and patient compliance. comScore's products deliver actionable insight to help refine consumer profiles, identify key alliances, optimize interactive marketing initiatives, benchmark against the competition and accurately measure the ROI of Web site and online marketing programs.

About comScore

comScore, Inc. is a global leader in measuring the digital world. For more information, please visit http://www.comscore.com/boilerplate.

CONTACT: Andrea Vollman of comScore, Inc., +1-312-775-6646, press@comscore.com

Web site: http://www.comscore.com/

Ticker Symbol: (NASDAQ-NMS:SCOR)

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Posted: April 2008

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