Abstract Details

Title A Potential Systematic Barrier to Community Health Literacy about Epilepsy Surgery: A Preliminary Readability Analysis of Online Health �鶹��ýӳ�� Materials in the United States

Topic Epilepsy/Clinical Neurophysiology (EEG)

Presentation(s) P6 - Poster Session 6 (5:30 PM-6:30 PM)

Poster/Presentation
Number 9-006

Objective Analyze readability of online health education materials designed to provide epilepsy surgery information to patients.

Background Epilepsy surgery is an effective albeit underused treatment for refractory epilepsy. The workup and procedure explanations are complex and further compounded by the cognitive difficulties many people with epilepsy face. A previous United Kingdom study showed poor readability of online resources used for epilepsy surgery. However, there is still much to explore regarding the readability of resources in the United States, and what kinds of sites are associated with better readability.

Design/Methods A private browser was used to search Google for the top 100 search results for the terms “epilepsy+surgery”. Scientific papers, insurance pages, pay-wall access sites, and non-text content were excluded. The website text was re-formatted to exclude graphics, contact information, links, and headers. Readability metrics were calculated using an online readability tool (Datayze Readability Analyzer). Analysis was done through R using the Kruskal-Wallis test, and statistical assumptions were assessed.

Results Here we present the preliminary analysis of the top 100 items from a Google search yielding 76 websites and 24 exclusions. Websites were categorized as US based organizations or non-US, content from level 4 epilepsy centers, and if the sources were community health websites not associated with academic institutions. The Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) showed significantly better readability in community health websites (FRE p=.03, FKGL p=.03), non-level 4 epilepsy centers (FRE p=.002, FKGL p=.002), and international websites (FRE p=.02, FKGL =.03).

Conclusions Health information source characteristics associated with better readability levels included non-academic centers, non-level 4 epilepsy centers and community health information websites. This analysis suggests that academic centers, especially level 4 epilepsy centers, should consider involving community members, advocacy organizations and non-medical writers in the designing of online epilepsy surgery health education materials.

Authors/Disclosures
Namal Seneviratne, MD PRESENTER	Mr. Seneviratne has nothing to disclose.
Sophey Ho, MD	Ms. Ho has nothing to disclose.
Daniel Jose Correa, MD, MSc, F�鶹��ýӳ�� (Montefiore Medical Center, Comprehensive Epilepsy Center)	Dr. Correa has received personal compensation in the range of $10,000-$49,999 for serving as an Editor, Associate Editor, or Editorial Advisory Board Member for �鶹��ýӳ��. Dr. Correa has or had stock in Aidin Inc.Dr. Correa has received research support from Genentech. Dr. Correa has received research support from Psi Upsilon Foundation Inc.