Internet Health Resources on Nocturnal Enuresis: A Readability, Quality, and Accuracy Analysis

Abstract

Introduction Nocturnal enuresis is a common yet quality-of-life-limiting paediatric condition. There is an increasing trend for parents to obtain information on the disease’s nature and treatment options via the internet. However, the quality of health-related information on the internet varies greatly and is largely uncontrolled and unregulated. With this study, a readability, quality and accuracy evaluation of the health information regarding nocturnal enuresis is carried out. Materials and Methods A questionnaire was administered to parents and patients with nocturnal enuresis to determine their use of the internet to research their condition. The most common search terms were determined, and the first 30 websites returned by the most popular search engines were used to assess the quality of information about nocturnal enuresis. Each site was categorised by type and assessed for readability using the Gunning-Fog score, SMOG index and Dale-Chall score; for quality using the DISCERN score; and for accuracy by comparison to the International Children’s Continence Society (ICCS) guidelines by three experienced paediatric urologists and nephrologists. Results A total of 30 websites were assessed and classified into five categories: professional (n = 13), non-profit (n = 8), commercial (n = 4), government (n = 3) and other (n = 2). The information was considered difficult for the public to comprehend, with mean Gunning-Fog, SMOG index and Dale-Chall scores of 12.1+/-4.3, 14.1+/-4.3 and 8.1+/-1.3, respectively. The mean summed DISCERN score was 41+/-11.6 out of 75. Only seven (23%) websites were considered of good quality (DISCERN score > 50). The mean accuracy score of the websites was 3.2+/- 0.6 out of 5. Commercial websites were of the poorest quality and accuracy. Websites generally scored well in providing their aims and identifying treatment benefits and options, while they lacked references and information regarding treatment risks and mechanisms. Conclusions Online information about nocturnal enuresis exists for parents; however, most websites are of suboptimal quality, readability and accuracy. Paediatric surgeons should be aware of parents’ health-information-seeking behaviour and be proactive in guiding parents to identify high-quality resources.

Hirschsprung Disease: A Literacy Analysis of Patient Information

“…These readability indices have been utilized in various medical fields as an objective means of text comprehension measurement [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Notably, two websites required payment for access.…”

“…Readability analyses are useful to measure the level needed to comprehend a unit of written text. They have been utilized many times in the medical field [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Google search for "Hirschsprung disease" and "aganglionic megacolon" was conducted, and the first 20 websites in the English language were collected as data.…”

Document Difficulty Aspects for Medical Practitioners: Enhancing Information Retrieval in Personalized Search Engines

“…Since the early 20th century, researchers in this field have developed a variety of readability formulas aimed at laypeople. Many of these formulas are still widely used today [25]. Among the most commonly used formulas are Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG), the Dale-Chall Readability formula, the Flesch Reading Ease formula, the Fog Index, and the Fry Readability Graph.…”