Internet and social media preferences of orthopaedic patients vary according to factors such as age and education levels

Abstract

BackgroundPatients can often access the internet and social media for health information but it is not clear how much they trust and use the information retrieved.ObjectiveTo investigate the social media and internet use rates and preferences of orthopaedic patients, to reveal to what extent they self‐treat, and to probe the affecting factors.MethodsTwo thousand fifty‐eight patients admitted to an orthopaedic polyclinic were asked to fill out a survey (voluntarily) consisting of 15 items, to collect demographic data, preference for platforms and sources used, trusted sources, and the extent to which information obtained was used for self‐care.ResultsThe most preferred and most trusted sources of information were Google and other search engines, and physicians' personal websites (p < 0.001).DiscussionVariables such as age, gender, educational level and occupation affect the research preferences. Reliance on social media decreases with increasing educational levels (p < 0.001).ConclusionHealth information and knowledge services should work with health professionals to improve aspects of health literacy among orthopaedic patients.

Analysis of the Most Popular Online Ankle Fracture–Related Patient Education Materials

“…Furthermore, patients may use alternate avenues and search terms when researching ankle fractures or may visit sites past the top 20 results that were evaluated in this study. Nevertheless, studies have shown that the Google search engine is among the most trusted by patients 12 and that the majority of people emphasize the first 10 results for any given Google search query. 5 Given that the AFI rubric used for quality analysis was based off of both AOFAS recommendations and the subjective considerations of a practicing foot and ankle surgeon, the items to include in the rubric may be up to interpretation and can differ among surgeons.…”