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Cyberchondria: a Growing Concern During the COVID-19 Pandemic and a Possible Addictive Disorder?

Gemma Mestre-BachMarc N Potenza
Published in: Current addiction reports (2023)
Cyberchondria appears to be a growing concern. However, there is not yet enough empirical evidence to determine whether this clinical condition has enough similarities with behavioral addictions to be considered as one. Likewise, psychometric instruments that exist to date have not been designed from the theoretical framework of behavioral addictions, so most of the factors that they evaluate may be preferentially related to anxiety. Finally, there is still no consensus on whether cyberchondria should be addressed in the context of health anxiety interventions, OCRD, or behavioral addictions; thus, more empirical evidence is needed.
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