Determinants of frequent Internet use in an urban kidney transplant population in the United States: Characterizing the digital divide

Context - The Internet is a staple of electronic communication and is essential to the emerging telemonitoring and health information technology interventions for adults with chronic diseases. Objective - To identify determinants of frequent Internet use in an urban kidney transplant population in the United States. Design - A single center, cross-sectional survey studySetting - An urban Midwestern transplant centerParticipants - 78 pretransplant and 177 posttransplant patientsMain Outcome Measures - Frequent Internet use, defined as using the Internet more than 5 hours per week. Results - Only 38% of participants reported being frequent Internet users. Non-Hispanic blacks and participants who reported their race/ethnicity as "other" were significantly less likely than whites to report being frequent Internet users. Women were 59% less likely than men to be frequent users of the Internet. Those who reported having kidney disease for more than 3 years were more likely to report being frequent Internet users. As education increased, Internet use increased. As age increased, Internet use decreased. Conclusion - Alternatives to electronic information sources and/or additional resources should be considered for those who may fall in the so-called digital divide.