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Quality-related variables at hepatological websites
M Fraquelli1, D Conte, C Cammà
1Postgraduate School of Gastroenterology, Pad. Granelli 3rd floor, IRCCS Maggiore Hospital, Via F Sforza 35, 20122 Milan, Italy. mfraquelli@yahoo.it
Summary
Hepatology websites often lack quality and are primarily for patients. Commercial sponsorship negatively impacts website quality and is frequently undisclosed, necessitating guidelines for liver disease information online.
Area of Science:
- Hepatology
- Medical Informatics
- Web Science
Background:
- The internet offers vast hepatology information, but website quality and characteristics are poorly understood.
- Assessing online health information is crucial for public and professional use.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analytically describe and critically evaluate online information on chronic hepatitis, hemochromatosis, and Caroli's disease.
- To assess the quality of hepatology websites and identify factors influencing their reliability.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a validated method to search four English search engines for three hepatology terms.
- Analyzed the first five links from each search (60 sites total), evaluating characteristics and quality (accuracy, reliability, depth) by three independent reviewers.
- Employed multiple logistic regression to analyze relationships between site characteristics and quality scores.
Main Results:
- 51% of sites met a sufficient quality score (>3).
- 73% of websites targeted patients over physicians.
- Commercial sponsorship was more common in chronic hepatitis sites (45%) and significantly correlated with poorer quality (OR 18.1), with 61% of commercial sites lacking financial disclosure.
Conclusions:
- Hepatology websites are generally of poor quality and primarily patient-oriented.
- Commercial interests, often undeclared, negatively impact website quality.
- Guidelines for certifying and monitoring liver disease websites are recommended.