P-433 Male infertility information on Swedish fertility clinics’ websites: An evaluation of readability, suitability, and quality
Authors: Westerbotn M , Sormunen T 
Published: June 2023

Study question

The aim of the study was to examine online information regarding male infertility on private clinics or university infertility clinics’ websites in Sweden.

Summary answer

The results of the present study indicate that there is a lack of fertility information directed at men on the Swedish fertility clinics’ websites.

What is known already

Previous research has shown that male infertility can be perceived as a threat to the masculinity and identity. Therefore, online forums are perceived as highly valuable by men seeking health-related information on the Internet, however, there is always a risk of obtaining information that is not evidence-based. For individuals seeking fertility-related information, studies have shown that the quality of Internet websites varies; online information seldom meets standards of truthfulness, reliability, and navigability. There is also a suboptimal quality across medical websites regarding evidence-based information and they have reading levels most appropriate for individuals with at least a high school education.

Study design, size, duration

A cross-sectional design was used to evaluate 22 fertility clinics’ websites focusing on male infertility.

Participants/materials, setting, methods

By using standardized methods for evaluating printed and electronic resources, with established reliability and validity, we evaluate how suitable the text on the fertility clinics’ websites is for patient purposes that affect both readability and comprehension. The Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM), and the DISCERN instrument was used.

Main results and the role of chance

Results disclosed that Swedish fertility clinićs websites has focus on information concerning women’s infertility. Information regarding male infertility was scanty. The suitability as established by SAM, was 59% for the private clinics and 66% for the government clinics. The highest suitability scores for the private clinics were items related to the cultural image, layout, subheadings, and chunking. For the governmental clinics, items were related to summary and review and cultural image. Items rated low were content about interactions for the private clinics, and interactions, writing styles, cover graphic, type of illustrations and motivations for the governmental clinics. The mean readability SAM score for the entire sample was 57%, meaning that the content was geared to readers at least 5th grade, demonstrating that the websites scored lower than the recommended 8th grade level readability, which made the information easy to understand for most visitors. For the DISCERN, one website met the criteria for “excellent” quality, nine were “good”, one “fair”, one “poor”, and five “very poor”. Items that scored lowest were clarity of sources, description of risks of treatment, and what would happen without treatment, benefits of each treatment, and affect quality of life.

Limitations, reasons for caution

The focus was to assess the quality of Swedish online information about male infertility on both private and university clinics’ websites, regulated by Swedish laws regarding fertility treatments. This may affect the information available on the websites and therefore may not be applicable to websites in other countries.

Wider implications of the findings

Men affected by infertility needs to make various choices from the information published on the fertility clinićs websites. The responsibility of the website’s information lies with health-care staff. Therefore, the information must be reliable, evidence-based, and up to date so that men can base their choices on reliable facts.

Trial registration number

non applicable