Anaesthesia for Total Hip and Knee Replacement: A Review of Patient Education Materials Available Online

Overview

Journal F1000Res

Specialties Biomedical Engineering
Science

Date 2020 Dec 18

PMID 33335711

Citations 1

Authors

Rebecca Marshall

Eoghan Pomeroy

Catriona McKendry

Michael Gilmartin

Paula McQuail

Mark Johnson

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Patients frequently consult the internet for health information. Our aim was to perform an Internet-based readability and quality control study using recognised quality scoring systems to assess the patient information available online relating to anaesthesia for total hip and knee replacement surgery. Online patient information relating to anaesthesia for total hip and knee replacement was identified using Google, Bing and Yahoo with search terms , .' Readability was assessed using Flesch Reading Ease (FRE), Flesch-Kincaid grade level (FKGL) and Gunning Fog Index (GFI). Quality was assessed using DISCERN instrument, Health On the Net Foundation seal, and Information Standard mark. 32 websites were analysed. 25% were HONcode certified, 15.6% had the Information Standard. Mean FRE was 55.2±12.8. Mean FKGL was 8.6±1.9. Six websites (18.8%) had the recommended 6 -grade readability level. Mean of 10.4±2.6 years of formal education was required to read the websites. Websites with Information Standard were easier to read: FKGL (6.2 vs. 9, ), GFI (8.8 vs. 10.7, ), FRE score (64.2 vs. 9, ). Mean DISCERN score was low: 40.3 ± 13. Overall, most websites were poor quality with reading levels too high for the target audience. Information Standard NHS quality mark was associated with improved readability, however along with HONcode were not found to have a statistically significant correlation with quality. Based on this study, we would encourage healthcare professionals to be judicious in the websites they recommend to patients, and to consider both the readability and quality of the information provided.

Citing Articles

Description of the Content and Quality of Publicly Available Information on the Internet About Inhaled Volatile Anesthesia and Total Intravenous Anesthesia: Descriptive Study.

Hu X, Pennington B, Avidan M, Kheterpal S, deBourbon N, Politi M JMIR Perioper Med. 2023; 6:e47714.

PMID: 37917148 PMC: 10654911. DOI: 10.2196/47714.

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