Online Patient Education Materials for Common Sports Injuries Are Written at Too-High of a Reading Level: A Systematic Review

Abdullah, Youssef; Alokozai, Aaron; O’Connell, Samantha; Mulcahey, Mary K.

doi:10.1016/j.asmr.2021.12.017

Cited by 9 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 37 publications

(171 reference statements)

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“…On this premise, the readability and quality of online patient educational material concerning PCL reconstruction were investigated. The findings of the present study were in concordance with prior studies focusing on orthopedic educational tools [ 9 , 11 , 24 - 29 ] and show that the most frequently accessed patient educational sources generally exceed the reading ability of the average US reader and the readability recommendations of the American Medical Association (AMA) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) [ 30 ]. The most frequently accessed online patient educational material regarding PCL reconstruction is not always easily accessible to the average reader, requiring much more than a 6th-grade reading level (the cut-off educational value recommended by the AMA and NIH for a comprehensible document) [ 31 - 35 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

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Readability and Quality of Online Patient Education Materials Concerning Posterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Venosa,

Cerciello,

Zoubi

et al. 2024

Cureus

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Objective This study aimed to assess the quality of online patient educational materials regarding posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) reconstruction. Methods We performed a search of the top-50 results on Google® (terms: “posterior cruciate ligament reconstruction,” “PCL reconstruction,” “posterior cruciate ligament surgery,” and “PCL surgery”) and subsequently filtered to rule out duplicated/inaccessible websites or those containing only videos (67 websites included). Readability was assessed using six formulas: Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease (FRE), Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKG), Gunning Fog Score (GF), Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) Index, Coleman-Liau Index (CLI), Automated Readability Index (ARI); quality was assessed using the JAMA benchmark criteria and recording the presence of the HONcode seal. Results The mean FRE was 49.3 (SD 11.2) and the mean FKG level was 8.09. These results were confirmed by the other readability formulae (average: GF 8.9; SMOG Index 7.3; CLI 14.7; ARI 6.5). A HONcode seal was available for 7.4 % of websites. The average JAMA score was 1.3. Conclusion The reading level of online patient materials concerning PCL reconstruction is too high for the average reader, requiring high comprehension skills. Practice implications Online medical information has been shown to influence patient healthcare decision processes. Patient-oriented educational materials should be clear and easy to understand.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Readability and Quality of Online Patient Education Materials Concerning Posterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Venosa,

Cerciello,

Zoubi

et al. 2024

Cureus

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Many recent articles have examined the readability of online resources, finding that most are written at a reading level beyond that of the target audience. 1 , 2 , 11 However, not as many have directly analyzed the accuracy of web-based materials by website source type. In a few studies that did, the advisability rate ranged from 49.4%, as reported by Peterson et al 20 in their analysis of 87 webpages for the quality of musculoskeletal information on the Internet, to between 76% and 99%, as in Beer et al’s 6 investigation of information regarding facial filler procedures.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in the Medical Advisability of Online Pitching Recommendations for Youth Softball Players Based on Website Source

Painter

Byrne

Dove

et al. 2023

Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine

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Background: Guidelines regarding injury prevention in fast-pitch softball pitchers have yet to be widely adopted, risking the online dissemination of misleading advice. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to assess the source and medical advisability of online pitching recommendations for youth softball players and highlight the risk of misinformation. It was hypothesized that many popular websites would contain content discordant with current medical guidelines regarding windmill softball pitching recommendations. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: A Google search using the phrase “youth softball pitching recommendations” was performed. Up to 100 websites were extracted and analyzed for website source type (commercial, medical/educational, or athletic organization) and informational quality (advisable, neutral, or discordant). The latter was determined with respect to the STOP Sports Injuries guidelines for arm injury prevention in youth softball players. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to assess potential associations between website source type and the informational quality of content therein. Results: A total of 86 websites were included in the analysis. Website source type was significantly predictive of informational quality ( P = .018). Among the 3 source types, medical/educational websites had the highest proportion classified as advisable (12/24 [50.0%]) and the lowest proportion classified as discordant (3/24 [12.5%]). Only 17.6% (6/34) of commercial websites were advisable, and advisable websites as a whole were more likely to be from medical/educational sources than athletic organization ( P = .016) or commercial ( P = .026) sources. The advisability rate among all websites was 25.6% (22/86). Although there was a significant association between position in the search results (first 10 vs remaining 76) and website source type ( P = .006), there was no association between position and informational quality ( P = .116). The first 10 websites, which trended toward greater advisability than the remaining 76 websites ( P = .060), were more likely than the remaining websites to be medical/educational sources ( P = .002). Conclusion: Website source type was significantly predictive of medical advisability. Medical/educational websites were the most advisable, while commercial and athletic organization websites were especially poor in their advisability. The overall advisability rate was only 25.6%. When making recommendations to patients, sports medicine providers should highlight the prevalence of discordant online softball pitching guidelines and take the opportunity to share medically advisable resources.

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Evaluation of quality, readability, suitability, and usefulness of online resources available to cancer survivors

et al. 2023

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Online Patient Education Materials for Common Sports Injuries Are Written at Too-High of a Reading Level: A Systematic Review

Cited by 9 publications

References 37 publications

Readability and Quality of Online Patient Education Materials Concerning Posterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Readability and Quality of Online Patient Education Materials Concerning Posterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

Differences in the Medical Advisability of Online Pitching Recommendations for Youth Softball Players Based on Website Source

Evaluation of quality, readability, suitability, and usefulness of online resources available to cancer survivors

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