Abstract
Patient education is essential for effective medical care. Although over half of patients search for health information online, most educational materials exceed the recommended sixth-grade reading level. Parathyroid disease is common yet often underdiagnosed. This study evaluates the readability of online patient resources for parathyroid disorders. A review of 100 online educational materials related to parathyroid disorders was performed. Using three validated instruments: Flesch Reading Ease, Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook, and Gunning Fog Index scores, reading grade level was calculated and Spearman correlations performed to evaluate associations between instruments. 59 sources were included. Majority of materials were from academic/research (36%), followed by general information/overviews (20%), government/institutional (14%), cancer-specific organizations (12%), professional societies (12%) and children’s health (5%). No patient materials were written at the appropriate grade level. Materials were > 12th grade reading level in 59% of sources (FRE = 71%, SMOG = 34%, GFI = 71%). There were strong, positive correlations between the three reading instruments. Readable educational materials facilitate effective healthcare literacy and empower patients to participate in shared decision-making, which is especially important given the complex diagnostic and therapeutic considerations for parathyroid disorders. This study demonstrates a significant ongoing disparity. Future efforts should focus on developing patient materials at the recommended reading level.