Assessment of online information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery

Online health resources are important for patients seeking perioperative information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery. The value of the resources depends on their readability, accuracy, content, quality, and suitability for patient use. We systematically assess current online health information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery. Systematic online searches were performed to identify websites discussing robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery. For each website, readability was measured by nine standardized tests, and accuracy and content were assessed by an independent panel of two robotic cardiothoracic surgeons. Quality and suitability of websites were evaluated using the DISCERN and Suitability Assessment of Materials tools, respectively. A total of 220 websites (120 cardiac, and 100 thoracic) were evaluated. Both robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery websites were very difficult to read with mean readability scores of 13.8 and 14.0 ( p = 0.97), respectively, requiring at least 13 years of education to be comprehended. Both robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery websites had similar accuracy, amount of content, quality, and suitability ( p > 0.05). On multivariable regression, academic websites [Exp (B)], 2.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.60–3.16; P < 0.001), and websites with higher amount of content [Exp (B)],1.73; 95% CI, 1.24–2.41; P < 0.001) were associated with higher accuracy. There was no association between readability of websites and accuracy [Exp (B)], 1.04; 95% CI, 0.90–1.21; P = 0.57). Online information on robotic cardiac and thoracic surgery websites overestimate patients’ understanding and require at least 13 years of education to be comprehended. As website accuracy is not associated with ease of reading, the readability of online resources can be improved without compromising accuracy.