背景:COVID-19大流行促使几种缺乏科学证据或违反医学指令的新兴疗法或预防措施越来越受欢迎。一种这样的疗法涉及二氧化氯的消耗,它通常用于清洁行业,并且可以作为矿物溶液在市场上获得。该物质已被推广为几种疾病的预防或治疗剂,包括SARS-CoV-2感染。自从大流行以来,人们对二氧化氯的兴趣越来越大,卫生机构,机构,世界各地的组织都试图阻止和限制这种物质的消费。
目的:本研究的目的是分析墨西哥的搜索引擎趋势,以评估自COVID-19大流行以来公众对二氧化氯的兴趣变化。
方法:我们从谷歌趋势平台检索了西班牙语中相当于“二氧化氯”的公共查询数据。地点设在墨西哥,时间范围为2019年3月3日至2021年2月21日。进行了描述性分析。Kruskal-Wallis和Dunn测试用于确定该术语在四个连续时间段之间的搜索量的显着变化,每13周,从2020年3月1日至2021年2月27日。
结果:从墨西哥大流行开始(2020年2月),与2019年相比,搜索数量呈上升趋势。最大成交量趋势记录在2020年7月19日至25日当周。搜索量在2020年9月至11月之间下降,但另一个高峰是在2020年12月至2021年2月,在1月10日达到最大值。从第一时间段到第四时间段的百分比变化分别为+312.85、-71.35和+228.18。使用Kruskal-Wallis和Dunn检验的成对比较显示四个时期之间的显着差异(P<.001)。
结论:错误信息是一种公共健康风险,因为它会降低对推荐措施的依从性,并鼓励使用尚未被证明安全的疗法。二氧化氯的摄入对人口构成了危险,并报告了一些不良反应。应实施计划,以指导对该物质感兴趣的人获得准确的医疗信息。
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted the increasing popularity of several emerging therapies or preventives that lack scientific evidence or go against medical directives. One such therapy involves the consumption of chlorine dioxide, which is commonly used in the cleaning industry and is available commercially as a mineral solution. This substance has been promoted as a preventive or treatment agent for several diseases, including SARS-CoV-2 infection. As interest in chlorine dioxide has grown since the start of the pandemic, health agencies, institutions, and organizations worldwide have tried to discourage and restrict the consumption of this substance.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this
study is to analyze search engine trends in Mexico to evaluate changes in public interest in chlorine dioxide since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: We retrieved public query data for the Spanish equivalent of the term \"chlorine dioxide\" from the Google Trends platform. The location was set to Mexico, and the time frame was from March 3, 2019, to February 21, 2021. A descriptive analysis was performed. The Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn tests were used to identify significant changes in search volumes for this term between four consecutive time periods, each of 13 weeks, from March 1, 2020, to February 27, 2021.
RESULTS: From the start of the pandemic in Mexico (February 2020), an upward trend was observed in the number of searches compared with that in 2019. Maximum volume trends were recorded during the week of July 19-25, 2020. The search volumes declined between September and November 2020, but another peak was registered in December 2020 through February 2021, which reached a maximum value on January 10. Percentage change from the first to the fourth time periods was +312.85, -71.35, and +228.18, respectively. Pairwise comparisons using the Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn tests showed significant differences between the four periods (P<.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Misinformation is a public health risk because it can lower compliance with the recommended measures and encourage the use of therapies that have not been proven safe. The ingestion of chlorine dioxide presents a danger to the population, and several adverse reactions have been reported. Programs should be implemented to direct those interested in this substance to accurate medical information.