Abstract
BackgroundThe internet has become an important source of health information for users worldwide. The novel coronavirus caused a pandemic search for information with broad dissemination of false or misleading health information.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the quality and readability of online information about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which was a trending topic on the internet, using validated instruments and relating the quality of information to its readability.MethodsThe search was based on the term “Wuhan Coronavirus” on the Google website (February 6, 2020). At the search time, the terms “COVID-19” or “SARS-CoV-2” (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) did not exist. Critical analysis was performed on the first 110 hits using the Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct (HONcode), the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmark, the DISCERN instrument, and Google ranking.ResultsThe first 110 websites were critically analyzed, and only 1.8% (n=2) of the websites had the HONcode seal. The JAMA benchmark showed that 39.1% (n=43) of the websites did not have any of the categories required by this tool, and only 10.0% (11/110) of the websites had the four quality criteria required by JAMA. The DISCERN score showed that 70.0% (n=77) of the websites were evaluated as having a low score and none were rated as having a high score.ConclusionsNonhealth personnel and the scientific community need to be aware about the quality of the information they read and produce, respectively. The Wuhan coronavirus health crisis misinformation was produced by the media, and the misinformation was obtained by users from the internet. The use of the internet has a risk to public health, and, in cases like this, the governments should be developing strategies to regulate health information on the internet without censuring the population. By February 6, 2020, no quality information was available on the internet about COVID-19.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is spreading globally from its epicenter in Hubei, China
The Wuhan coronavirus health crisis misinformation was produced by the media, and the misinformation was obtained by users from the internet
The use of the internet has a risk to public health, and, in cases like this, the governments should be developing strategies to regulate health information on the internet without censuring the population
Summary
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is spreading globally from its epicenter in Hubei, China. The cases are changing daily and can be tracked worldwide in almost real time by different websites like the one supported by Johns Hopkins University [1]. This new disease is caused by a virus from the Coronaviridae family, identified in people exposed to seafood and wild animals in a local market. It is clear that there is no way to prevent the spread of COVID-19, but it is important to verify the information on the internet to prevent the panic and misinformation associated with the disease. The internet has become an important source of health information for users worldwide. The novel coronavirus caused a pandemic search for information with broad dissemination of false or misleading health information
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