Evaluation of Available Online Information Regarding Treatment for Vitreous Floaters

• Published in: Seminars in ophthalmology Vol. 36; no. 1-2; p. 58
• Main Authors: Kalavar, Meghana, Hubschman, Sasha, Hudson, Julia, Kuriyan, Ajay E, Sridhar, Jayanth
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 17.02.2021
• Subjects: Comprehension; Consumer Health Information - standards; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data Accuracy; Databases, Factual - standards; Education, Distance - standards; Eye Diseases - pathology; Eye Diseases - surgery; Humans; Internet; Patient Education as Topic - standards; Search Engine; United States; Vitreoretinal Surgery; Vitreous Body - pathology; Vitreous Body - surgery; United States; vitreoretinal surgery; floaters; patient education
• ISSN: 1744-5205
• DOI: 10.1080/08820538.2021.1887898

To assess the quality, content, and readability of information available online on vitreous floater information. Cross-sectional study. Not applicable. Websites were generated using a Google search of "vitreous floaters treatment" and "[State]" and were analyzed using a standardized checklist of 22 questions. Readability was assessed using the Flesch Reading Ease score. Websites met qualification criteria if they represented U.S.-based institutions, if they provided clinical care and addressed vitreous floater treatment on their website. Of the 1,065 websites screened, 456 were included. Of these, 406 (89%) were private institutions, 24 (5.3%) were academic, and 26 (5.7%) were a combination of private and academic. The average readability score correlated to a 10th-12th grade reading level. Vitreous floater treatment was discussed on 283 (62.1%) websites and 63 (21.8%) websites discussed potential side effects. Google rank was inversely correlated with the depth of explanation (r = -0.114, = .016). Observation was the main treatment recommended (55.8%, n = 158), followed by laser treatment (27.6%, n = 78), no specific treatment recommendation (11.3%, n = 32), and vitrectomy (5.3%, n = 15). Centers with vitreoretinal surgeons were 16.43 times more likely to recommend vitrectomy than those without vitreoretinal surgeons ( < .001). Online information about vitreous floater treatment is variable, and the material is at a higher than recommended reading level for health information. While treatment was discussed by nearly two thirds of websites, less than a quarter mentioned possible complications, and treatment recommendations varied significantly depending on physician training.