Quality and Readability of English-Language Internet Information for Tinnitus

Abstract

Because of the wealth of information available on the internet and increasing numbers of individuals relying on websites as a primary source of information for health-related questions, it is important that the readability of their content is within the comprehension level of most readers.The study evaluated the quality and readability of English-language Internet information for tinnitus.Analysis of Internet websites on tinnitus.A total of 134 websites with tinnitus information.Three key words (i.e., tinnitus, ringing in the ear, and buzzing in the ear) were entered in five country-specific versions of the most commonly used internet search engine in August 2016. For each of the 15 searches, the first 20 relevant websites were examined. After removing duplicates, a total of 134 websites were assessed. Their origin (commercial, nonprofit organization, government, personal, or university), quality (Health On the Net [HON] certification and DISCERN scores), and readability (Flesch Reading Ease score, Flesch-Kincaid Reading Grade Level Formula, and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook) were assessed.Most websites were of commercial (49.3%) or nonprofit organization (38.8%) origin. Their quality and readability was highly variable. Only 13.5% of websites had HON certification. χ2 analysis showed that there was significant association between website origin and HON certification [χ2(4) = 132.9, p < 0.0001]. The mean DISCERN scores were 2.39. No association between DISCERN scores and website origin was found. Readability measures showed that on average, only people with at least 10–12 yr of education could read and understand the internet information for tinnitus in websites. Almost all the websites exceeded the most stringent reading level recommended for health information.The results highlight great variability in the quality and readability of health information, specifically for tinnitus in the internet. These findings underscores the need for stakeholders (e.g., web-developers, clinicians) to be aware of this and to develop more user-friendly health information on websites to make it more accessible for people with low literacy.

Internet-Based Audiological Interventions: An Update for Clinicians

“…Reporting readability has only more recently been reported (e.g., Beukes et al, 2016). Prioritizing access in terms of readability is important as online hearing-related health care information has been reported to be above the recommended grade levels (Laplante-Lévesque & Thorén, 2015;Manchaiah et al, 2018).…”

Quality, Readability, and Suitability of Hearing Health-Related Materials: A Descriptive Review

“…Moreover, low suitability may be related to developers not considering aspects such as use of common vocabulary, use of subheadings, and presentation of problems and questions for reader engagement. Additionally, electronic hearing health information has also been found to have low quality and have high readability levels (Laplante-Lévesque, Brännström, Andersson, & Lunner, 2012;Manchaiah et al, 2019a). Brooke, Isherwood, Herbert, Raynor, and Knapp (2012) examined the usability of hearing aid booklets to determine how easy it is for its users to find and understand 156 the key facts.…”

Assessment of Readability of Commonly Used Inventories for Vertigo and Tinnitus

“…Okunabilirlik, 19. yüzyılın başlarında, Amerika Birleşik Devletleri'nde ortaya çıkmış, dile özgü bir kavramdır.…”

“…1 Tinnitus tedavisinde hasta eğitimi "güçlü öneri" kategorisinde yer almaktadır ve bilişsel davranış terapileri kapsamında hastalara kolay anlaşılabilecek, sonuçları en doğru şekilde değerlendirilebilecek materyallerin sunulması gerekmektedir. 19 Yaşam kalitesini önemli derecede bozan bu şikayetlerin klinisyen tarafından değerlendirilmesi ve tedavisi de zor olabilmektedir. Bu nedenle vertigo ve tinnitusun semptomatolojisinin değerlendirilmesinde, tedavi monitorizasyonunda ve araştırmacıların kanıta dayalı verileri elde edebilme kaygısı nedeniyle birçok değerlendirme envanterleri kullanılmaktadır.…”

“…Yapılan çalışmalarda odyoloji ve otolaringolojide kullanılan birçok envanterlerin okunabilirlik seviyesi önerilen seviye olan beş veya altıncı okuma seviyesinden daha yüksek bulunmuştur. 14,19 Bizim araştırmamızda da vertigo (DHI, VDI-SS, DEU-MDDS) ve tinnitus (THQ, THI, TSI) envanterlerinin anlaşılabilmesi için gereken ortalama eğitim seviyeleri 8-9. sınıf, HRQoL ve BDI için ise 5-6-7. sınıf olarak belirlendi. Zorluk dereceleri ise; DHI için orta güçlükte, HRQoL ve BDI için çok kolay, diğerleri ise kolay olarak test edildi.…”