Web-Based Information on the Treatment of Dental Hypomineralization

Abstract

Purpose: To categorise and evaluate the quality and readability of the web-based information about the treatment of the variety of forms of dental hypomineralization. Methods: An internet search using two different search terms regarding treating dental hypomineralization was conducted using the Google search engine. The first 100 websites from each search were analysed. Data recorded included DISCERN instrument scores, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmarks, and the Health on the Net seal (HON). Flesch Reading Ease Scores (FRES), Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL), the Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook Index (SMOG), and the Coleman-Liau index were calculated to assess readability. Results: A search for "Treatment of hypomineralized teeth" on Google yielded 48,500 results. After excluding irrelevant websites, only 25 were evaluated based on affiliation with universities/medical centers, non-profit organizations, commercial entities, or government agencies. The majority of the content was medical facts presented as text and visuals such as images and videos. The study found that the scores for questions about the benefits and risks of treatment were low, while alternative treatments had high scores. Only one website met the HON code criteria, and a minority of websites achieved JAMA benchmarks. The readability ratings varied across different tests used in the study. Conclusion: Most websites had university or medical center affiliation but only partially related to the specialty. Two-thirds of websites used images. The online information was inaccurate, poor quality, and hard to read for the average person. Dental professionals should be aware of this information's quality and work to improve it.

Assessment of Arabic Web-Based Knowledge About Clear Aligners: An Infodemiologic Study

“…In the Arabic content, of this study, none of the websites had the HON seal compared to six websites in Alpaydın et al's study [29]. The HON code seal on a medical website indicates understandable, accessible, and reliable information but does not guarantee the accuracy of the presented content [22].…”

“…In the era of the Internet, it is not surprising that patients use online sources to knowledge themselves about their conditions and treatment options. In the field of orthodontic treatments, multiple studies were conducted to evaluate the quality of patientcentered online content in terms of YouTube videos [27], social media tweets [28], and different website contents [29]. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quality and readability of Arabic online patientcentered information about orthodontic clear aligners in the most commonly used search engines.…”

“…A similar study by Alpaydın et al, which evaluated the English content about clear aligners, included 111 websites out of 150 websites; although this study included double this number, it excluded about 400 websites. The same exclusion criteria were considered in both studies, with most of the exclusion in this study being due to the presence of advertisement banners and pop-ups [29].…”

“…Items 1 through 8 and 9 through 15 in the first two components concern validity, and the last item asks for a general assessment. Following that, the whole points are further divided into low (16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32), moderate (33-64), and high (65) quality.…”

Assessment of Quality and Readability of Online Patient-Centered Arabic Web-Based Knowledge About Apicoectomy

“…Based on the tools used, the included websites were considered readable. Previous studies evaluating the readability of dental health information on various topics revealed that most of the included websites were difficult to read, targeting healthcare professionals and urging the need for simple information that the majority of patients can understand [ 16 , 23 , 25 , 26 ]. In a study evaluating the readability of online information about apicectomy in the English language, they reported a high level of difficulty [ 16 ].…”