Adam E.M. Eltorai|Soha Ghanian|Charles A. Adams|Christopher T. Born|Alan H. Daniels
Readability of Patient Education Materials on the American Association for Surgery of Trauma Website
Brown University|Providence College|Brown University|Providence College|Brown University|Providence College|Brown University|Providence College|Providence College|Brown University
quality information internet dubious worth many patients seek reliable expert sources per american medical association ama national institutes health nih recommendations readability patient education materials exceed sixthgrade reading level average reading skill us adults eighthgrade levelthis study evaluates whether recognized source expert content american association surgery trauma aast websites patient education materials recommended readability guidelines medical informationusing wellvalidated fleschkincaid formula analyze grade level readability evaluated readability 16 publiclyaccessible entries within patient education section aast websitemean sd grade level readability 109 18 articles one articles readability score sixthgrade level readability articles exceeded maximum recommended level average 49 grade levels 95 confidence interval 4058 p 00001 readability articles exceeded eighthgrade level average 29 grade levels 95 confidence interval 2038 p 00001 one articles readability score eighthgrade levelthe aasts online patient education materials may limited utility many patients readability information exceeds average reading skill level adults us lack patient comprehension represents discrepancy accordance goals aasts objectives patient education efforts