Levine Emma C, McGee Shayan A, Kohan Joshua, Fanning James, Willson Thomas D
Department of Surgery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
Department of Surgery, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH, USA.
Plast Surg (Oakv). 2025 Feb;33(1):107-115. doi: 10.1177/22925503231195018. Epub 2023 Aug 15.
Rhinoplasty is one of the most common cosmetic procedures performed by plastic surgeons and otolaryngologists. Previous studies have concluded that the readability of rhinoplasty information does not meet the recommended guidelines for the 8th grade reading level. In this study, we performed an updated readability analysis and a comprehensive online review of decision-making factors for patients considering rhinoplasty. Additionally, the differences between plastic surgery and otolaryngology-specific web pages were also analyzed in this study. This study analyzed 30 websites from universities and private practice webpages for decision-making factors, readability, and tone. These sites were identified by performing a depersonalized Google search using the search terms "nose job decision factors" and "rhinoplasty decision factors." An independent -test was performed to assess the differences between webpages. A total of 30 websites were comprehensively reviewed for a comparative analysis of readability for potential rhinoplasty patients. Decision-making factors were divided into 3 categories: individual factors, goals of the procedure, and technical considerations. These categories were then further divided into subcategories. The most common decision-making factor discussed was procedural considerations (83.3%), the least common being lifestyle (10%). Additionally, only 26.7% of web pages mentioned ethnic background and skin type as potential considerations before surgery. Less than half (40%) discussed the importance of setting realistic expectations for the procedure. Of the total sites analyzed in the study, 65.5% were ENT-based, 24.1% were plastic surgery-based, 3.4% were dental/oral maxillofacial surgeons, and 6.9% were combined plastic surgeons and ENT. Statistically significant differences between ENT- and plastic surgeon-based webpages were observed. Risks and complications were more frequently discussed on ENT web pages ( = .02). ENT sites also had more adverbs ( = .024) and more uses of passive voice ( = .006). Additionally, plastic surgery web pages appeared to elicit more of the emotion "disgust" after analysis utilizing IBM Watson Natural Language Understanding ( < .001). This study highlights the necessity for continued improvement in the readability of webpages designed for patients considering rhinoplasty. Additionally, there were statistically significant differences between decision-making factors presented on ENT-based webpages and plastic-surgery-based webpages. This study may aid surgeons in developing websites that are more accessible, equitable to patients, and contain a more comprehensive discussion regarding key patient decision-making factors and preoperative considerations.
隆鼻手术是整形外科医生和耳鼻喉科医生实施的最常见的美容手术之一。以往研究得出结论，隆鼻手术相关信息的可读性未达到八年级阅读水平的推荐指南。在本研究中，我们对考虑进行隆鼻手术的患者的决策因素进行了更新的可读性分析和全面的在线评估。此外，本研究还分析了整形外科和耳鼻喉科特定网页之间的差异。本研究分析了来自大学和私人诊所网页的30个网站的决策因素、可读性和语气。这些网站是通过使用搜索词“隆鼻手术决策因素”和“隆鼻术决策因素”进行非个性化谷歌搜索确定的。进行独立t检验以评估网页之间的差异。对总共30个网站进行了全面评估，以对潜在隆鼻手术患者的可读性进行比较分析。决策因素分为三类：个人因素、手术目标和技术考量。然后将这些类别进一步细分为子类别。讨论最多的决策因素是手术考量（83.3%），最不常见的是生活方式（10%）。此外，只有26.7%的网页提到种族背景和皮肤类型是手术前可能需要考虑的因素。不到一半（40%）的网页讨论了对手术设定现实期望的重要性。在本研究分析的所有网站中，65.5%基于耳鼻喉科，24.1%基于整形外科，3.4%是牙科/口腔颌面外科医生，6.9%是整形外科医生和耳鼻喉科联合。观察到基于耳鼻喉科和整形外科医生的网页之间存在统计学上的显著差异。耳鼻喉科网页更频繁地讨论风险和并发症（P = 0.02）。耳鼻喉科网站也有更多副词（P = 0.024）和更多被动语态的使用（P = 0.006）。此外，在使用IBM Watson自然语言理解进行分析后，整形外科网页似乎引发了更多“厌恶”情绪（P < 0.001）。本研究强调了持续提高为考虑隆鼻手术的患者设计的网页可读性的必要性。此外，基于耳鼻喉科的网页和基于整形外科的网页所呈现的决策因素之间存在统计学上的显著差异。本研究可能有助于外科医生开发更易于访问、对患者公平且包含有关关键患者决策因素和术前考量更全面讨论的网站。
