Terms of Use

Last Updated: July 3, 2026

Welcome to the Mayo Clinic Connect website and related sites and digital and online services (“Mayo Clinic Connect” or the “Site”). These Terms of Use cover the uses for all of this Site, although additional conditions, restrictions, and policies, including the Privacy Policy, posted or referenced on the Site may also apply.

Your use and access of this Site constitutes your acceptance, without modification, of the terms, conditions and notices contained herein. In addition, when using particular site services, you shall be subject to any guidelines, rules, and policies applicable to such services that may be posted from time to time. All such guidelines, rules, and policies are hereby incorporated by reference into these Terms of Use.

By using this website, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ THE TERMS OF USE AND THAT YOU ACCEPT THE TERMS THEREOF. Please read the following terms carefully. If you do not agree to the Terms of Use, you may not access, view, obtain goods or services from, or otherwise use this Site.

You agree to the terms and conditions of the Privacy Policy, which details the ways in which we and other parties might use personal information that belongs to you. In accordance with this Policy, we may use information and materials received from you or collected through your use of our Site and may disclose such information to third parties.

You are responsible for regularly reviewing these terms and conditions. Mayo Clinic reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to change, modify, add, remove or terminate any portion of this Agreement, in whole or in part, at any time, without prior notice.

NOT MEDICAL ADVICE

All information shared by members on Mayo Clinic Connect, such as messages, images, advice, URLs, and any other material, is for informational purposes only. Nothing in the content, products or services should be considered, or used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. You should always talk to your health care provider for diagnosis and treatment, including your specific medical needs. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on the community.

IF YOU HAVE OR SUSPECT THAT YOU HAVE A MEDICAL PROBLEM OR CONDITION, PLEASE CONTACT A QUALIFIED HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL IMMEDIATELY. IF YOU ARE IN THE UNITED STATES AND ARE EXPERIENCING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, PLEASE CALL 911 OR CALL FOR EMERGENCY MEDICAL HELP ON THE NEAREST TELEPHONE.

Sharing Personal Health Information — Important Limitations

Mayo Clinic Connect is a public community forum. It is not a clinical care platform, a patient portal, or a covered entity under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and communications made through this Site are not subject to HIPAA protections. You should not post, share, or transmit any information on this Site with the expectation that it will be treated as confidential, protected health information, or privileged medical communication.

You are solely responsible for any personal health information you choose to share on this Site. Before posting, please carefully consider that: (1) content you post in community forums is visible to other registered users and, depending on your privacy settings, may be visible to the general public and indexed by internet search engines; (2) Mayo Clinic cannot guarantee the confidentiality of information you share in public or semi-public areas of the Site; and (3) other users of this Site are members of the public, not healthcare professionals acting in a clinical capacity, and any responses to your posts should not be treated as professional medical advice or care.

You should never post information on this Site that you would not be comfortable sharing publicly, including but not limited to your full name in combination with a medical condition, financial or insurance information, government-issued identification numbers, or the health information of any third party, including a family member or caregiver, without that person’s explicit consent.

Mayo Clinic will handle any personal information you provide in connection with your use of this Site in accordance with the Privacy Policy, which you are encouraged to review carefully before participating in the community.

Age Requirement

Mayo Clinic Connect is intended solely for use by individuals who are 18 years of age or older. By accessing or using this Site, you represent and warrant that you are at least 18 years of age. If you are under 18 years of age, you are not permitted to access, register for, or use this Site for any purpose.

Mayo Clinic Connect does not knowingly collect, solicit, or maintain personal information from any person under the age of 18, and does not knowingly allow such persons to register for or use the Site. If Mayo Clinic learns that a user is under the age of 18, it will promptly terminate that user's account and delete any personal information associated with that account.

Acceptable Use

By accessing or using Mayo Clinic Connect, you agree to use the Site only for lawful purposes and in a manner consistent with the health, safety, and dignity of all community members. The following categories of conduct are prohibited. This list is illustrative and not exhaustive; Mayo Clinic reserves the right to determine in its sole discretion whether conduct not specifically listed below nonetheless violates the spirit and intent of these Terms.

Illegal and Harmful Conduct: You may not use this Site for any purpose that violates applicable local, state, national, or international law or regulation; to post, transmit, or solicit content that is unlawful, fraudulent, defamatory, libelous, obscene, pornographic, threatening, or harassing; to post content that promotes, glorifies, or provides instruction for self-harm, suicide, or the harming of others, or that could reasonably be expected to endanger the health or safety of any individual; to stalk, intimidate, bully, or abuse any other user or individual, whether through public posts or private communications facilitated by the Site; to collect, store, or disclose personal information about other users without their explicit consent, including posting another user's real name, address, phone number, email address, or other identifying information without authorization (commonly referred to as "doxxing").
Health and Medical Conduct: You may not use this Site to impersonate a licensed healthcare professional, including a physician, nurse, pharmacist, therapist, or other clinician, or to present yourself as having clinical qualifications or authority you do not possess; to post false, fabricated, or deliberately misleading health or medical information, including invented clinical findings, misrepresented research, or unsupported claims about the safety or efficacy of any treatment, medication, or medical device; to promote, advertise, or solicit the purchase of unproven treatments, supplements, cures, or medical products, whether for commercial gain or otherwise; to discourage other users from seeking professional medical care, following prescribed treatment plans, or taking prescribed medications; or to post content that exploits the medical vulnerability of other users for personal, commercial, or manipulative purposes.
Integrity of the Community: You may not use this site to post content that constitutes hate speech, including content that degrades, threatens, or dehumanizes individuals or groups on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other protected characteristic; to impersonate any other person or entity, including another user, a Mayo Clinic employee, or any public figure; to create or operate multiple accounts to evade enforcement or manipulate discussions; to engage in coordinated inauthentic behavior; to post content that is intentionally disruptive; or to use Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) tools to generate or post content in violation of the AI-Generated Content provisions of these Terms.
Commercial and Promotional Conduct: You may not use this Site to distribute advertising, promotional materials, spam, or other unsolicited communications to any user; to promote, market, or solicit sales of any product, service, or commercial offering, including dietary supplements, medical devices, alternative health treatments, or professional services; to post affiliate links or referral codes without prior written authorization from Mayo Clinic; or to use the Site or any user data obtained through the Site for any commercial purpose not expressly authorized by these Terms.
Security and Technical Integrity: You may not use this Site to attempt to disable, compromise, hack, or interfere with the proper functioning of the Site or its underlying systems; to access data, accounts, or areas of the Site you are not authorized to access; to use any scraper, crawler, spider, robot, or other automated means to access, copy, or index data from the Site; to introduce or transmit any virus, malware, ransomware, or other harmful code through the Site; or to use any device, software, or routine to interfere with the proper working of this Site or any activity conducted on this Site. Violations of the security provisions above may result in civil or criminal liability. Mayo Clinic will investigate suspected security violations and may cooperate with law enforcement authorities in connection with any such investigation.
Intellectual Property: You may not use this Site to post, upload, or transmit content that infringes the copyright, trademark, trade secret, or other intellectual property rights of any person or entity; to reproduce, republish, or redistribute content from the Site in any manner that exceeds the limited personal use rights granted under these Terms; or to remove, obscure, or alter any copyright notice, trademark, or other proprietary marking on any content accessed through the Site.

Violations of system or network security may result in civil or criminal liability. Mayo Clinic will investigate occurrences that may involve such violations and may involve, and cooperate with, law enforcement authorities in prosecuting users who are involved in such violations.

Security and Access

If access to any portion of the Site requires a username and password, you agree to access those areas only using credentials assigned to you. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your username and password and must not share, transfer, or disclose your credentials to any third party. You are fully responsible for all activity that occurs under your account, whether or not authorized by you. You agree to notify Mayo Clinic promptly if you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account or any other breach of account security. Mayo Clinic reserves the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without cause, and with or without notice.

User-Generated Content, Reviews, Feedback, and other Postings to the Site

If you submit, upload, or post any comments, ideas, suggestions, information, files, videos, images, or other materials to the Site, including any Artificial Intelligence (“AI”)-generated content, (collectively “User-Generated Content”), you agree not to provide any User-Generated Content that (1) is defamatory, abusive, libelous, unlawful, obscene, threatening, harassing, fraudulent, pornographic, or harmful, or that could encourage criminal or unethical behavior, (2) violates or infringes the privacy, copyright, trademark, trade dress, trade secrets, intellectual property or other proprietary rights of any person or entity, or (3) contains or transmits a virus or any other harmful component. You agree not to contact other users of the Site through unsolicited e-mail, telephone calls, mailings, or any other method of communication. You represent and warrant to Mayo Clinic that you have the legal right and authorization to provide all User-Generated Content to Mayo Clinic for the purposes and Mayo Clinic's use as set forth herein. You hereby grant to Mayo Clinic a royalty-free, irrevocable, transferable right and license to use the User-Generated Content in whatever manner Mayo Clinic desires, including, without limitation, to copy, modify, delete in its entirety, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, and/or sell and/or distribute such User-Generated Content and/or incorporate such User-Generated Content into any form, medium, or technology throughout the world. Mayo Clinic is and shall be under no obligation (1) to maintain any User-Generated Content in confidence; (2) to pay to you any compensation for any User-Generated Content; or (3) to respond to any User-Generated Content. You hereby waive all rights to any claim against Mayo Clinic for any alleged or actual infringements of any proprietary rights, rights of privacy and publicity, moral rights, and rights of attribution in connection with such User-Generated Content.

You are fully responsible for any AI-generated content you post on this Site, to the same extent and under the same standards as content you author yourself. If you post content on this Site that was substantially generated by an AI tool — including but not limited to text, images, summaries, or translations produced by AI systems — you must clearly identify that content as AI-generated at the time of posting. You may not use AI tools to generate or post any content that violates the Acceptable Use or any other provision of the Terms of Use.

Mayo Clinic reserves the right (but not the obligation) to monitor and edit or remove any User-Generated Content submitted to the Site. You grant Mayo Clinic the right to use the name that you submit in connection with any User-Generated Content. You agree not to use a false email address, impersonate any person or entity, or otherwise mislead as to the origin of any User-Generated Content. You are and shall remain solely responsible for the content of any User-Generated Content you make. Mayo Clinic and its affiliates take no responsibility and assume no liability for any User-Generated Content submitted by you or any third party.

Mayo Clinic reserves the right to release information to the proper authorities, as a result of a violation of our standards or unlawful acts, if the information is subpoenaed and/or if we deem it necessary and/or appropriate. Mayo Clinic has the right, but not the obligation, to refuse service, terminate accounts, or remove or edit content, in its sole discretion.

Research and Quality Improvement Use

Mayo Clinic may use User-Generated Content, consistent with our Privacy Policy, to operate, improve, evaluate, and develop Mayo Clinic Connect and related services, including for community moderation, quality improvement, analytics, education, and research purposes.

User-Generated Content on the Site may be analyzed in aggregated or de-identified form for research, publication, reporting, service improvement, or educational purposes. Any such use will be conducted in a manner consistent with applicable law and our Privacy Policy.

Your participation in Mayo Clinic Connect does not, by itself, constitute participation in a research study or clinical trial, and you will not be enrolled in any such study or trial without your knowledge. If Mayo Clinic determines that a proposed use of your information requires your consent under applicable law or institutional policy, Mayo Clinic will seek that consent before proceeding with such use.

Indemnification

You acknowledge that you own or otherwise control all of the rights to the content that you post; that the content is accurate, including any AI-generated content; and that use of the content you supply does not violate the Terms of Use. You agree that you will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Mayo Clinic from and against any damages, losses, liabilities, judgments, costs, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees and costs) against or incurred by Mayo Clinic arising out of a claim by a third party relating to your breach of these Terms of Use or applicable law, User-Generated Content and any other materials you post or allow to be posted to the Site, your use or access of the Site, access of this Site by anyone using your user ID and password, or any other actions taken by you on the Site.

Accuracy and integrity of information

Although Mayo Clinic attempts to ensure the integrity and accuracy of the Site, it makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees as to the correctness or accuracy of the Site and content thereon. It is possible that the Site could include typographical errors, inaccuracies, or other errors and that unauthorized additions, deletions, and alterations could be made to the Site by third parties. In the event that an inaccuracy arises, please inform Mayo Clinic so that it can be corrected. Mayo Clinic reserves the right to unilaterally correct any inaccuracies on the Site without notice. Information contained on the Site may be changed or updated without notice. Additionally, Mayo Clinic shall have no responsibility or liability for information or content posted to the Site from any non-Mayo Clinic affiliated third party.

You will be responsible for your own User-Generated Content and the consequences of posting or otherwise transmitting those User-Generated Content, including AI-generated content. Mayo Clinic does not represent or guarantee the truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of any material posted or otherwise transmitted by website users or endorse any opinions expressed by such users. Mayo Clinic does not generally screen, monitor or approve User-Generated Content from our website users in advance. However, Mayo Clinic may, from time to time, participate in communications on the site, or review communications on the site. If Mayo Clinic identifies User-Generated Content which violates this agreement, or if we receive notification about a user regarding User-Generated Content thatdoes not conform to this Agreement, Mayo Clinic has the right, but not the obligation, to investigate the allegations and determine in good faith and at its sole discretion whether to remove or request the removal of the User-Generated Content. We have no liability or responsibility to users for performance or nonperformance of such activities. Mayo Clinic reserves the right to expel users and prevent their further access to the website for violating this Agreement or violating the law. We have the right, but not the obligation, to remove User-Generated Content that are abusive, illegal, disrespectful, disruptive, or otherwise problematic.

Termination of use

Mayo Clinic may immediately, without prior notice, issue a warning, temporarily suspend, indefinitely suspend, or terminate your account, or use of and access to the Site, at our sole discretion, for any reason, whether with or without cause or warning, and without liability. Your sole remedy against Mayo Clinic in the event of a dispute arising out of these Terms of Use, the Site or your use thereof, is to cease your use of the Site. In the event of termination, Mayo Clinic may delete and/or store, in its discretion, data associated with your use of the Site. Mayo Clinic may also change, suspend, or discontinue any aspect of the website at any time, including the availability of any website feature, database, or content.

Intellectual Property

The marks “Mayo,” “Mayo Clinic,” “Mayo Clinic Health System,” and the triple-shield Mayo logo are trademarks and/or service marks of the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. The content and design of this Site is protected by U.S. and international copyright laws. The content, organization, graphics, design, compilation, magnetic translation, digital conversion, and other matters related to this Site are also protected under applicable copyrights and other proprietary (including but not limited to intellectual property) rights as a collective work and/or compilation, pursuant to international conventions and U.S. and other copyright laws. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. The contents, and every part thereof, of the Site are only for your personal, non-commercial use. You do not acquire ownership rights to any content, document, or other materials viewed through the Site. The posting of information or materials on the website does not constitute a waiver of any right in such information and materials. You may not copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, display, transmit, or frame any of these materials without prior written consent from the copyright owners, except that you may view, download, display, and print a single copy of these materials on a single computer for personal, noncommercial use only, so long as: you do not alter or modify the materials in any way; you include all applicable notices and disclaimers (including copyright notices); and you do not use the materials in a way that suggests an association with Mayo Clinic or an affiliated Mayo entity.

Mayo Clinic respects the intellectual property rights of others and expects our users to do the same. The policy of Mayo Clinic is to terminate the accounts of repeat copyright offenders and other users who infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide Mayo Clinic's Copyright Agent & Counsel with the following information required by the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 512: (1) a physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed; (2) identification of the copyright work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site; (3) identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material; (4) information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact the complaining party; (5) a statement that the complaining party has a good-faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and, (6) a statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Mayo Clinic
200 1st St SW
Rochester, MN 55905

Disclaimers

We make no guarantee of the accuracy, correctness or completeness of any information on the Site, including User-Generated Content, and shall not be responsible for: (i) any errors of omission arising from the use of such information; (ii) any failures, delays or interruptions in the delivery of any content or service contained within the website; and (iii) any defamatory, libelous or unlawful material contained within the Site, including user web pages, resumes, emails, profiles, opinions, advice, statements, memorandums or discussion board postings, or materials related to a users' use of the Site's chat features. You acknowledge that any reliance upon any such opinion, advice, statement, memorandum, or information shall be at your sole risk.

YOU UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT THE SITE AND ANY SERVICES, CONTENT, OR INFORMATION CONTAINED ON OR PROVIDED BY THE SITE IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS. MAYO CLINIC DOES NOT MAKE ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, REPRESENTATIONS, OR ENDORSEMENTS WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR NONINFRINGEMENT OR THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE) WITH REGARD TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MERCHANDISE, INFORMATION, OR SERVICE PROVIDED THROUGH THE SITE. IN ADDITION, MAYO CLINIC DOES NOT GUARANTEE THAT USE OF THE SITE WILL BE FREE FROM TECHNOLOGICAL DIFFICULTIES INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, UNAVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION, DOWNTIME, SERVICE DISRUPTIONS, VIRUSES, OR WORMS. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPLEMENTING SUFFICIENT PROCEDURES AND CHECKPOINTS TO SATISFY YOUR PARTICULAR REQUIREMENTS FOR ACCURACY OF DATA INPUT AND OUTPUT.

Limitation of Liability

THE USE OF THE SITE IS ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK, AND IN NO EVENT SHALL MAYO CLINIC BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE, OR ANY OTHER MONETARY OR OTHER DAMAGES, FEES, FINES, PENALTIES, OR LIABILITIES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING IN ANY WAY TO THIS SERVICE, OR SITES ACCESSED THROUGH THIS SERVICE, AND/OR CONTENT OR INFORMATION PROVIDED HEREIN. ANY CLAIMS AGAINST MAYO CLINIC AND MAYO CLINIC'S LIABILITY RELATING TO A PRODUCT OR SERVICE PURCHASED ON OUR SITE IS LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THE PRODUCT OR SERVICE. YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY FOR DISSATISFACTION WITH THE SITE OR SERVICE IS TO STOP USING THE SERVICE. USER HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL APPLY TO ALL CONTENT, MERCHANDISE, AND SERVICES AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Links to third party websites

The Site contains links to other sites operated by third parties, including but not limited to third party sites that may display the Mayo Clinic trademarks (“Third Party Sites”). These links are available for your convenience and are intended only to enable access to these Third Party Sites and for no other purpose.

Mayo Clinic does not warrant or make any representation about the substance, quality, functionality, accuracy, fitness for a particular purpose, merchantability or any other representation about any Third Party Site or its content. A link to a Third Party Site on the Mayo Clinic Site does not constitute sponsorship, endorsement, approval, or responsibility for any Third Party Site. Mayo Clinic makes no representation or warranty as to any products or services offered on any Third Party Site. The conditions of use and privacy policy of any Third Party Site may differ substantially from the conditions of use and legal notices that apply to your use of the Site. Please review the conditions of use for all Third Party Sites for more information about the terms and conditions that apply to your use of Third Party Sites.

Mayo Clinic expressly disclaims liability for direct, consequential, or incidental damages arising from the products, services, advertisements, actions, or website content of these and any other third parties, and you waive any claims against Mayo Clinic for damages arising from such transactions or your reliance upon statements contained therein. You will not consider Mayo Clinic nor will Mayo Clinic be construed as, a party to such transactions, whether or not we may have received some form of revenue or other remuneration in connection with the transaction. Merchants are responsible for all aspects of order processing, fulfillment, billing, and customer service.

Jurisdiction

You agree that any dispute or claim (including personal injury claims) related to your use of the Site shall be governed by the laws of the State of Minnesota. The exclusive forum for actions between the parties is the District Court of Minnesota sitting in Olmsted County, Minnesota. These Terms of Use also apply to anyone claiming on your behalf.

Any cause of action you may have with respect to your use of the Site must be commenced within one year after the claim or cause of action arises. If for any reason a court of competent jurisdiction finds any provision of these Terms of Use, or portion thereof, to be unenforceable, that provision shall be enforced to the maximum extent permissible so as to affect the intent of the Terms of Use, and the remainder of the Terms of Use shall continue in full force and effect.