Akosman Sinan, Qi Lina, Pakhchanian Haig, Foos William, Maliakkal Janice, Raiker Rahul, Belyea David A, Geist Craig
George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Department of Ophthalmology, George Washington University School of Medicine, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
Orbit. 2022 Nov 12:1-7. doi: 10.1080/01676830.2022.2142945.
The aim of this study was to compare state-by-state concentrations of oculoplastic surgeons against patient demand using Google Search Trends data, in order to identify potential areas of unmet need.
Google Trends data from 2004 to 2019 was collected to determine relative search volumes for the keyword "blepharoplasty" in each US state and the District of Columbia. Oculoplastic surgeon density was calculated by dividing the number of active American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons members in 2019 by the State Census Bureau population estimates. Relative search volume values were divided by the local concentration of surgeons, and results were normalized between 0 and 100 to obtain a relative demand index for each state.
Oculoplastic surgeon density varied widely across the country. The greatest concentrations of surgeons per 100,000 people were in D.C. (0.708) and Rhode Island (0.378), while the lowest were in Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming (all 0). Relative search volumes were tightly distributed, ranging between 100 (Hawaii) and 45 (Vermont). The highest relative demand was found in low surgeon density states, such as Hawaii, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. The lowest relative demand was found in DC (5), Rhode Island (12), and Utah (12).
Our results revealed vast disparities in surgical concentrations across the US and highlighted a number of areas with a relative undersupply of oculoplastic surgeons. Further investigation is necessary to examine the underlying factors impacting the supply and distribution of oculoplastic surgeons.
本研究旨在利用谷歌搜索趋势数据，比较各州眼整形外科医生的分布情况与患者需求，以确定潜在的未满足需求领域。
收集2004年至2019年的谷歌趋势数据，以确定美国各州及哥伦比亚特区“眼睑成形术”关键词的相对搜索量。通过将2019年美国整形与重建外科医师协会活跃会员人数除以州人口普查局的人口估计数，计算眼整形外科医生密度。相对搜索量值除以当地外科医生的集中度，并将结果在0到100之间进行标准化，以获得每个州的相对需求指数。
眼整形外科医生密度在全国范围内差异很大。每10万人中外科医生集中度最高的是哥伦比亚特区（0.708）和罗德岛州（0.378），而最低的是蒙大拿州、新墨西哥州、北达科他州、南达科他州和怀俄明州（均为0）。相对搜索量分布紧密，范围在100（夏威夷）到45（佛蒙特州）之间。在外科医生密度较低的州，如夏威夷、蒙大拿州、新墨西哥州、北达科他州、南达科他州和怀俄明州，相对需求最高。相对需求最低的是哥伦比亚特区（5）、罗德岛州（12）和犹他州（12）。
我们的结果揭示了美国外科医生分布的巨大差异，并突出了一些眼整形外科医生相对供应不足的地区。有必要进一步调查影响眼整形外科医生供应和分布的潜在因素。
