scholarly journals Quality of Novel Coronavirus Related Health Information over the Internet: An Evaluation Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashish Joshi ◽  
Fnu Kajal ◽  
Soumitra S. Bhuyan ◽  
Priya Sharma ◽  
Ashruti Bhatt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Search Engine ◽  
Evaluation Study ◽  
World Health ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

Background. The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread globally from its epicenter in Hubei, China, and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020. The most popular search engine worldwide is Google, and since March 2020, COVID-19 has been a global trending search term. Misinformation related to COVID-19 from these searches is a problem, and hence, it is of high importance to assess the quality of health information over the internet related to COVID-19. The objective of our study is to examine the quality of COVID-19 related health information over the internet using the DISCERN tool. Methods. The keywords included in assessment of COVID-19 related information using Google’s search engine were “Coronavirus,” “Coronavirus causes,” “Coronavirus diagnosis,” “Coronavirus prevention,” and “Coronavirus management”. The first 20 websites from each search term were gathered to generate a list of 100 URLs. Duplicate sites were excluded from this search, allowing analysis of unique sites only. Additional exclusion criteria included scientific journals, nonoperational links, nonfunctional websites (where the page was not loading, was not found, or was inactive), and websites in languages other than English. This resulted in a unique list of 48 websites. Four independent raters evaluated the websites using a 16-item DISCERN tool to assess the quality of novel coronavirus related information available on the internet. The interrater reliability agreement was calculated using the intracluster correlation coefficient. Results. Results showed variation in how the raters assigned scores to different website categories. The .com websites received the lowest scores. Results showed that .edu and .org website category sites were excellent in communicating coronavirus related health information; however, they received lower scores for treatment effect and treatment choices. Conclusion. This study highlights the gaps in the quality of information that is available on the websites related to COVID-19 and study emphasizes the need for verified websites that provide evidence-based health information related to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Quality of Novel coronavirus related health information over the Internet: An evaluation study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashish Joshi ◽  
Fnu Kajal ◽  
Priya Sharma ◽  
Ashruti Bhatt ◽  
Kanishk Kumar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Information Dissemination ◽  
Keyword Search ◽  
Large Family ◽  
Evaluation Study ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Kappa Statistics ◽  
Quality Of Information ◽  
Novel Coronavirus

BACKGROUND A Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak was declared a pandemic by the WHO on March 11, 2020. The 2019 n-CoV is a virus that is known to belong to a large family of coronaviruses which have affected the human kind in the past also like; SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV. As of today, April 12 2020, there are 1.78 million total Coronavirus Cases, 108,880 deaths and 404,581 recovered cases. Public health experts worry that the spread of COVID-19 could be worsened by misinformation. It is important to analyze the information available on the internet in regard to COVID-19. OBJECTIVE To evaluate quality of COVID-19 related health information over the internet using DISCERN tool. METHODS 100 URLs were generated by search engine Google in March 2020 by selecting the first 20 websites that appeared in the results of various keyword search. The keywords used in this search included “Coronavirus”, “Coronavirus causes”, “Coronavirus diagnosis”, “Coronavirus prevention” and “Coronavirus management”. The 16 item DISCERN tool was used to evaluate the quality of COVID-19 related information available on internet. Inter-rater reliability agreement was calculated using kappa statistics. RESULTS Results showed variation in how the raters assigned scores to different website categories. The lowest scores were received by .com websites. Results showed that .edu and .org, website category sites were excellent in communicating novel coronavirus related health information; however, they received lower scores for treatment effect and treatment choices. CONCLUSIONS The critical gaps in the available quality of information were assessed in context to COVID-19 and help us to evaluate the quality of information available and can guide the users to choose between various websites. If inaccurate information is being spread, that site should be closed down or some regulatory provisions should also be framed in this regard. One recommendation could be that websites, once ranked with trust marks, can be popularized to public for better information dissemination.

Quality of Health Information on the Internet

2009 ◽  
pp. 443-455
Author(s):  
Kleopatra Alamantariotou
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Information Quality ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
The Internet ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Use Of The Internet ◽  
Effective Use

Recent statistics show that the World Wide Web has now grown to over 100 million sites: a phenomenal expansion in only 15 years (Mulligan 2007). It has been estimated that there are 100,000 sites offering health related information (Wilson 2002). As the amount of health information increases, the public find it increasingly difficult to decide what to accept and what to reject (Burgess 2007). Searching for information on the internet is both deceptively easy and the same time frustratingly difficult (Kiley 2002). The challenge for consumers is to find high quality, relevant information as quickly as possible. There has been ongoing debate about the quality of information aimed at patients and the general public and opinions differ on how it can be improved (Stepperd 1999). The purpose of this chapter is to provide a brief overview of the different perspectives on information quality and to review the main criteria for assessing the quality of health information on the internet. Pointers are provided to enable both clinicians and patients find high quality information sources. An understanding of these issues should help health professionals and patients to make effective use of the internet.

A cross-sectional study on quality of diabetes information identified from the Internet (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingchun Fan ◽  
Jean Craig ◽  
Na Zhao ◽  
Fujian Song
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Search Engine ◽  
Search Engines ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Health Information ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Content Coverage ◽  
Google Search

BACKGROUND Increasingly people seek health information from the Internet, in particular, health information on diseases that require intensive self-management, such as diabetes. However, the Internet is largely unregulated and the quality of online health information may not be credible. OBJECTIVE To assess the quality of online information on diabetes identified from the Internet. METHODS We used the single term “diabetes” or equivalent Chinese characters to search Google and Baidu respectively. The first 50 websites retrieved from each of the two search engines were screened for eligibility using pre-determined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Included websites were assessed on four domains: accessibility, content coverage, validity and readability. RESULTS We included 26 websites from Google search engine and 34 from Baidu search engine. There were significant differences in website provider (P<0.0001), but not in targeted population (P=0.832) and publication types (P=0.378), between the two search engines. The website accessibility was not statistically significantly different between the two search engines, although there were significant differences in items regarding website content coverage. There was no statistically significant difference in website validity between the Google and Baidu search engines (mean Discern score 3.3 vs 2.9, p=0.156). The results to appraise readability for English website showed that that Flesch Reading Ease scores ranged from 23.1 to 73.0 and the mean score of Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level ranged range from 5.7 to 19.6. CONCLUSIONS The content coverage of the health information for patients with diabetes in English search engine tended to be more comprehensive than that from Chinese search engine. There was a lack of websites provided by health organisations in China. The quality of online health information for people with diabetes needs to be improved to bridge the knowledge gap between website service and public demand.

scholarly journals Where we are in fighting against COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 52 (8) ◽  
pp. 1483-1486
Author(s):  
Xuebin Wei ◽  
Mingshu Wang ◽  
Menno-Jan Kraak
Keyword(s):  
World Health Organization ◽  
World Health ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Monthly Basis ◽  
Related Information ◽  
The World ◽  
Color Blind ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Health Organization

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization announced the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as a pandemic. Despite an increasing number of international attempts using maps to present and communicate COVID-19-related information in different organizations, most map products have only used the presentation function of maps. Against this backdrop, we offer an automatically daily-updated, color-blind-friendly, Tableau-based interactive dashboard to demonstrate where and how different countries are fighting against COVID-19. The dashboard allows users to specify countries they want to compare and aggregate relevant data on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

scholarly journals The Content and Quality of Information About Hyperacusis Presented Online

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3S) ◽  
pp. 623-630
Author(s):  
Sandra N. Smith ◽  
Ethan Smallwood ◽  
Magdalena Sereda ◽  
Bethany Adams ◽  
Derek J. Hoare
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Data Extraction Form ◽  
Source Of Information ◽  
Complete Account

Purpose Hyperacusis is a disorder characterized by reduced sound tolerance leading to ear pain, emotional distress, and reduced quality of life. Many people with hyperacusis turn to the Internet for information and support from online communities to discuss their condition. The purpose of this study was to assess the content and quality of hyperacusis information presented online. Method The three most used Internet search engines were used to identify relevant websites using the single search term hyperacusis . Fifteen websites were selected for analysis. Details of the purpose, audience, and content of each website were extracted using a bespoke data extraction form. The quality of the information on each website was rated using the validated DISCERN questionnaire. Results There was a wide disparity in the quality and content of hyperacusis information across websites. The website Hyperacusis Focus achieved the highest overall DISCERN score. Hyperacusis Focus and U.K. National Health Service websites were the most comprehensive online resources for health care professionals and patients, respectively. Wikipedia was judged useful for both health care professionals and patients. In general, hyperacusis-related information was accurate. However, no single website provided a complete account of hyperacusis, and some were judged to be selective in the information they provided. Conclusions The Internet provides an important source of information for those who have hyperacusis and those who care for them. Revisions to the websites reviewed here are needed for each to provide a complete account of hyperacusis. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12869717

Quality of Health Information on the Internet

2011 ◽  
pp. 204-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kleopatra Alamantariotou
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Information Quality ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
The Internet ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Use Of The Internet ◽  
Effective Use

Recent statistics show that the World Wide Web has now grown to over 100 million sites: a phenomenal expansion in only 15 years (Mulligan 2007). It has been estimated that there are 100,000 sites offering health related information (Wilson 2002). As the amount of health information increases, the public find it increasingly difficult to decide what to accept and what to reject (Burgess 2007). Searching for information on the internet is both deceptively easy and the same time frustratingly difficult (Kiley 2002). The challenge for consumers is to find high quality, relevant information as quickly as possible. There has been ongoing debate about the quality of information aimed at patients and the general public and opinions differ on how it can be improved (Stepperd 1999). The purpose of this chapter is to provide a brief overview of the different perspectives on information quality and to review the main criteria for assessing the quality of health information on the internet. Pointers are provided to enable both clinicians and patients find high quality information sources. An understanding of these issues should help health professionals and patients to make effective use of the internet.

The Quality of Web Sites' Health Information on Minimal Invasive Repair of Pectus Excavatum Using the DISCERN Instrument

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wietse P. Zuidema ◽  
Maarten J. Graumans ◽  
Jan W. A. Oosterhuis ◽  
Alida F. W. van der Steeg ◽  
Ernest van Heurn
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Pectus Excavatum ◽  
Medical Information ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Related Information

Abstract Introduction The Internet is a frequently used tool for patients with pectus excavatum (PE) to get information about symptoms and treatment options. In addition, it is used by both health care providers as a marketing tool and support group systems. The Internet health information varies in precision, quality, and reliability. The study purpose was to determine the quality of information on the PE Web sites using the DISCERN instrument, including information about operation and potential complications after a Nuss bar procedure. Materials and Methods Four search engines, Google, Yahoo, Ask, and Bing, were used to explore seven key terms concerning PE. Search language was English. The DISCERN quality instrument was used to evaluate the Web sites. Also, information on possible complications was scored per Web site. Results A total of 560 Web sites were assessed in March 2019. Excluded were 139 Web sites. There were 333 duplicates, leaving 88 unique Web sites. Of these, 58.1% were hospital-related information Web sites, 28.4% medical information Web sites, and 3.4% patient forum sites. Interactive multimedia was used on 21.6% of the sites. Pain postoperatively was mentioned on 64.8% of the sites, while only 9.1% mentioned the mortality risk of the surgical correction of PE for Nuss bar placement. The quality of the unique Web sites showed a mean DISCERN score of 42.5 (standard deviation 12.2). Medical information Web sites, encyclopedia, and government-sponsored sites had higher DISCERN scores. Hospital-related information sites, medical companies, and lay persons' sites, had lower total scores. Conclusion The overall quality of PE Web sites is low to moderate, with serious shortcomings.

scholarly journals Misinformation of COVID-19 on the Internet: Infodemiology Study

10.2196/18444 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. e18444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Yunam Cuan-Baltazar ◽  
Maria José Muñoz-Perez ◽  
Carolina Robledo-Vega ◽  
Maria Fernanda Pérez-Zepeda ◽  
Elena Soto-Vega
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Code Of Conduct ◽  
Search Time ◽  
Quality Criteria ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Search For Information

Background The internet has become an important source of health information for users worldwide. The novel coronavirus caused a pandemic search for information with broad dissemination of false or misleading health information. Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality and readability of online information about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which was a trending topic on the internet, using validated instruments and relating the quality of information to its readability. Methods The search was based on the term “Wuhan Coronavirus” on the Google website (February 6, 2020). At the search time, the terms “COVID-19” or “SARS-CoV-2” (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) did not exist. Critical analysis was performed on the first 110 hits using the Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct (HONcode), the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark, the DISCERN instrument, and Google ranking. Results The first 110 websites were critically analyzed, and only 1.8% (n=2) of the websites had the HONcode seal. The JAMA benchmark showed that 39.1% (n=43) of the websites did not have any of the categories required by this tool, and only 10.0% (11/110) of the websites had the four quality criteria required by JAMA. The DISCERN score showed that 70.0% (n=77) of the websites were evaluated as having a low score and none were rated as having a high score. Conclusions Nonhealth personnel and the scientific community need to be aware about the quality of the information they read and produce, respectively. The Wuhan coronavirus health crisis misinformation was produced by the media, and the misinformation was obtained by users from the internet. The use of the internet has a risk to public health, and, in cases like this, the governments should be developing strategies to regulate health information on the internet without censuring the population. By February 6, 2020, no quality information was available on the internet about COVID-19.

scholarly journals Quality of Health Information on the Internet for Prostate Cancer

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dwayne T. S. Chang ◽  
Robert Abouassaly ◽  
Nathan Lawrentschuk
Keyword(s):  
Prostate Cancer ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Health Resources ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Government ◽  
Google Search

Introduction. To compare (1) the quality of prostate cancer health information on the Internet, (2) the difference in quality between websites appearing earlier or later in the search, and (3) the sources of sponsorship for each of these websites. Materials and methods. The top 150 listed websites on the Google search engine for each of the 11 search terms related to prostate cancer were analysed. Quality was assessed on whether the website conforms to the principles of the Health On the Net Foundation. Each of these websites was then reviewed to determine the main source of sponsorship. Statistical analysis was performed to determine if the proportion of HON accreditation varied among the different cohorts of listed websites and among the 11 search terms used. Results. In total, 1650 websites were analysed. Among these, 10.5% websites were HON-accredited. The proportion of HON-accredited websites for individual search terms ranged from 3.3% to 19.3%. In comparison with the search term of “Prostate cancer,” four search terms had statistically significant odds ratio of the rate of HON accreditation. Websites 51–150 were statistically less likely to have HON accreditation than websites 1–50. The top three website sponsors were journal/universities (28.8%), commercial (28.1%), and physician/surgeon (26.9%). Conclusions. The lack of validated and unbiased websites for prostate cancer is concerning especially with increasing use of the Internet for health information. Websites sponsored or managed by the government and national departments were most likely to provide impartial health information for prostate cancer. We need to help our patients identify valid and unbiased online health resources.

scholarly journals Assessment of the Quality of Internet-Based Health Information in the Indonesian Language about Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

2020 ◽  
pp. 222-227
Author(s):  
Andon Hestiantoro ◽  
Danang T. Pamungkas
Keyword(s):  
Health Information ◽  
Search Engine ◽  
Search Engines ◽  
Information Quality ◽  
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Healthcare Organizations ◽  
Syndrome Analysis ◽  
Ovarian Syndrome

Objectives: To investigate health information quality about PCOS on the internet in Indonesian language.Methods: Top website from two separate search engines (Google and Bing) was collected using the keyword of “sindrom ovarium polikistik” (polycystic ovarian syndrome). Analysis of health information quality on those websites was performed.Results: Sixty-nine websites were included for analysis. The majority of those websites have good information quality in terms of content accuracy and website credibility. There was no difference in quality between the two search engines. The website was found at the top two pages in each search engine to have better quality than the later pages (p=0.02). The educational website had better quality (p=0.05). The website made by healthcare organizations had better quality (p=0.04). The non-commercial website had better information quality (p=0.01).Conclusion: Criteria affecting health information quality on the internet were as follows: found at the top two pages on a search engine; educational website; made by healthcare organization; and non-commercial purpose.Keywords: health information quality, Indonesian language, internet-based, polycystic ovarian syndrome Abstrak Tujuan: Untuk melakukan kajian kualitas informasi kesehatan tentang PCOS di internet dalam Bahasa Indonesia.Metode: Situs web teratas dari dua mesin pencari terpisah (Google dan Bing) dikumpulkan dengan menggunakan kata kunci “sindrom ovarium polikistik”. Analisis kualitas informasi kesehatan pada situs-situs tersebut telah dilakukan.Hasil: Enam puluh sembilan situs web dimasukkan untuk analisis. Mayoritas situs web tersebut memiliki kualitas informasi yang baik dalam hal akurasi konten dan kredibilitas situs web. Tidak ada perbedaan kualitas antara kedua mesin pencari tersebut. Situs web ini ditemukan pada dua halaman teratas di setiap mesin pencari memiliki kualitas yang lebih baik daripada halaman-halaman selanjutnya (p = 0,02). Kualitas situs web berbasis pendidikan menunjukkan hasil lebih baik (p = 0,05). Kualitas website yang dibuat oleh organisasi kesehatan menunjukkan hasil lebih baik (p = 0,04). Situs web non-komersial memiliki kualitas informasi yang lebih baik (p = 0,01).Kesimpulan: Kriteria yang mempengaruhi kualitas informasi kesehatan di internet adalah sebagai berikut: ditemukan pada dua halaman teratas pada mesin pencari; situs web berbasis pendidikan; dibuat oleh organisasi kesehatan; dan tujuan non-komersial.Kata kunci : bahasa indonesia, berbasis internet, kualitas informasi kesehatan, sindrom ovarium polikistik.

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