Context: Oral submucous fibrosis is a potentially malignant disorder and internet has become a popular source of health information in this 21st century.
Aims: To assess the quality and readability of the information on internet relating to oral submucous fibrosis.
Materials and Methods: Google, Yahoo and MSN search engines were used to perform electronic search with the search term "Oral Submucous Fibrosis”. The first 50 consecutives sites in each search engine were visited, classified and assessed for quality using DISCERN rating instrument and Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmarks. Readability was assessed using Flesh Reading Ease Score (FRES). The presence of Health on the Net (HON) seal was also recorded.
Statistical analysis used: Software SPSS 14.0 was used for statistical analysis and p value of less than 0.05 was considered significant.
Results: 15 sites were assessed after filtering of the sites. The mean value for DISCERN score, FRES was found to be 36.6 and 29.21 respectively. Most of the assessed sites failed to meet the two JAMA benchmarks criteria out of four. Only 2 out of 15 sites presented HON seal.
Conclusion: The quality of the information on internet relating to oral submucous fibrosis is moderate to good with some shortcomings. It is difficult to be comprehended by the general population without higher education qualification.
