UNASSIGNED: We sought to evaluate the potential reinforcement of misconceptions in websites discussing carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS).
UNASSIGNED: After removing all cookies to limit personalization, we entered \"carpal tunnel syndrome\" into five search engines and collected the first 50 results displayed for each search. For each of the 105 unique websites, we recorded publication date, author background, and number of views. The prevalence of potential reinforcement and/or reorientation of misconceptions for each website was then scored using a rubric based on our interpretation of the best current evidence regarding CTS. The informational quality of websites was graded with the DISCERN instrument, a validated tool for assessing online health information.
UNASSIGNED: Every website contained at least one potentially misleading statement in our opinion. The most common misconceptions reference \"excessive motion\" and \"inflammation.\" Greater potential reinforcement of misinformation about CTS was associated with fewer page views and lower informational quality scores.
UNASSIGNED: Keeping in mind that this analysis is based on our interpretation of current best evidence, potential misinformation on websites addressing CTS is common and has the potential to increase symptom intensity and magnitude of incapability via reinforcement of unhelpful thoughts regarding symptoms.
UNASSIGNED: The prevalence of patient-directed health information that can increase discomfort and incapability by reinforcing common unhelpful thoughts supports the need for innovations in how we develop, oversee, and evolve healthy online material.

Purpose: To evaluate the medical accuracy in discussions of stem cell therapy for retinal diseases on a social media internet forum (Reddit). Methods: A cross-sectional study assessed 11 Reddit forums and 411 unique comments from 2017 to 2022. Evaluated participants were all anonymous Reddit users. Discussions were independently examined for medical accuracy by a board-certified, fellowship-trained retina surgeon in active practice. Results: Reddit users self-identified mainly as prospective patients followed by research students and physicians or healthcare workers. Inquiries mostly regarded stem cell treatment for macular degeneration. Thirty-six percent of the forum\'s content was found to be inaccurate or misleading. When specifically considering factual comments, the inaccuracy rate increased to 54%. Identified gaps in knowledge mostly regarded the current state of the technology (25%) followed by misinterpretation of trial results (16%) and scam treatments (14%). Most inaccurate or misleading comments favored stem cell advancements (72%). Conclusions: This study highlights the gaps in knowledge and areas of medical misinformation regarding ocular stem cell therapies shared by individuals on Reddit.

BACKGROUND: Complementary and alternative (CAM) cancer treatment is often expensive and not covered by insurance. As a result, many people turn to crowdfunding to access this treatment.
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to identify the rationales of patients with cancer seeking CAM treatment abroad by looking specifically at crowdfunding campaigns to support CAM cancer treatment in Tijuana, Mexico.
METHODS: We scraped the GoFundMe.com and GiveSendGo.com crowdfunding platforms for campaigns referencing CAM cancer clinics in Tijuana, initiated between January 1, 2022, and February 28, 2023. The authors created a coding framework to identify rationales for seeking CAM treatment in Tijuana. To supplement campaign metadata, we coded the beneficiary\'s cancer stage, type, age, specific treatment sought, whether the beneficiary died, gender, and race.
RESULTS: Patients sought CAM cancer treatment in Tijuana because the (1) treatment offers the greatest efficacy (29.9%); (2) treatment offered domestically was not curative (23.2%); (3) the clinic treats the whole person, and addresses the spiritual dimension of the person (20.1%); (4) treatments are nontoxic, natural, or less invasive (18.2%); and (5) clinic offers the newest technology (8.5%). Campaigns raised US $5,275,268.37 and most campaign beneficiaries were women (69.7%) or White individuals (71.1%).
CONCLUSIONS: These campaigns spread problematic misinformation about the likely efficacy of CAM treatments, funnel money and endorsements to CAM clinics in Tijuana, and leave many campaigners short of the money needed to pay for CAM treatments while costing beneficiaries and their loved one\'s time, privacy, and dignity. This study affirms that Tijuana, Mexico, is a very popular destination for CAM cancer treatment.

UNASSIGNED: The accuracy and reliability of health information disseminated through news is crucial, as it directly impacts both individual and societal health outcomes. This study aims to analyze the publication process of health content in Türkiye and its implications for public health. By examining the perspectives of various health communication stakeholders, the study seeks to identify existing issues and propose potential solutions.
UNASSIGNED: The research uses a mixed-methods approach, including baseline content analysis of 846 news by 133 criteria, quantitative research with 78 participants encompassing bureaucrats, academics, journalists, and health association members, and 15 in-depth interviews for comprehensive insights.
UNASSIGNED: The content analysis indicated that 23.2% of the analyzed news articles lacked credible sources, while 63% did not mention the author\'s name. A striking 96.2% of respondents stated that inaccurate health news poses a risk to public health, emphasizing the urgent need for standardized reporting practices. The majority (90.9%) pinpointed the media as the primary catalysts for infodemic spread, with 93.5% citing gatekeepers as barriers to accurate information. Eroding trust in media, fueled by unethical practices, harms both media credibility and effective public health interventions.
UNASSIGNED: The study underscores the necessity for a collaborative approach among public institutions, academia, and media, focusing on responsibility, regulation, and sanctions against the infodemic. The research advocates for a balanced approach that prioritizes health rights and press freedom within a stakeholder-driven framework, highlighting that legislation alone cannot fully enhance the digital information ecosystem.

Psychological interventions tend to be confrontational in nature. That is, when psychologists seek to bring about change in beliefs, attitudes, or behaviors, they often do so by directly confronting the presumed barrier to change. Confrontational approaches can be effective, but suffer from limitations to their efficacy, such as the possibility of arousing discomfort or defensiveness from the recipient. The current piece seeks to highlight an alternative strategy that we refer to as bypassing, which refers to a general approach for bringing about behavior change without confrontation. Leveraging insights from research on misinformation, stereotypes, and persuasion, we present evidence that non-confrontational approaches can be as effective, if not more so, than the traditional confrontational paradigm.

Research on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and misinformation endorsement among Spanish-speaking Americans is limited. This cross-sectional study used a Spanish-language survey from May-August 2021 among 483 Spanish speakers living in the US and Puerto Rico. We applied multivariable Poisson regression with robust error variances to assess the association between independent variables and binary outcomes for vaccine acceptance versus hesitance, as well as misinformation endorsement. Vaccine acceptance was associated with COVID-19 risk perception score (PR = 1.7 high vs. low perceived risk), opinion of government transparency (PR = 2.2 very transparent vs. not transparent), and trust in vaccine information (PR = 1.8 high vs. low). There was also an interaction between time spent on social media and social media as a main source of COVID-19 information (p = 0.0484). Misinformation endorsement was associated with opinion about government transparency (PR = 0.5 moderately vs. not transparent), trust in vaccine information (PR = 0.5 high vs. low trust), social media impact on vaccine confidence (PR = 2.1 decreased vs. increased confidence), distrust vaccines (PR = 1.9 distrust vs. trust), using vaccine information from Facebook (PR = 1.4 yes vs. no), and time spent on social media by those using social media as main source of COVID-19 vaccine information (p = 0.0120). Vaccine acceptance in respondents with high misinformation endorsement scores was 0.7 times those with low scores. These findings highlight the importance of effective information dissemination, the positive role of social media, and government transparency in boosting vaccine uptake among Spanish speakers in the US.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the quality, reliability, and level of misinformation in TikTok videos about hysteroscopy.
METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis of TikTok videos retrieved using \"hysteroscopy\" as search term was performed. Patient education materials assessment tool for audio-visual content (PEMAT A/V), the modified DISCERN (mDISCERN), global quality scale (GQS), video information and quality index (VIQI) and misinformation assessment were used.
RESULTS: Of three hundred videos captured, 156 were excluded and 144 were included. Most videos were partially accurate or uninformative (43.8% and 34.7%, respectively). Non-healthcare providers produced more inaccurate or uninformative videos than healthcare workers (51.1% vs 4.0%; P < 0.001). Compared to content by professionals, content by patients showed increased distrust towards gynecologists (11.7% vs 0%; P = 0.012) and increased incidence of anxiety and concern towards hysteroscopy (25.5% vs 2%; P < 0.001). PEMAT A/V scores for understandability and actionability were low at 42.9% (interquartile range [IQR]: 11.1-70) and 0% (IQR: 0-0), respectively. Understandability (P < 0.001) and actionability (P = 0.001) were higher for professionals\' created content relative to patients\' videos. Similarly, median mDISCERN score was low (1 [IQR 0-2]), with significantly higher score for healthcare professionals compared to patients (P < 0.001). Overall video quality was also low, with median VIQI and GQS score of 7 (IQR 4-11) and 1 (IQR 1-3), respectively, and significantly higher scores for healthcare workers\' captions compared to patients\' for both (P < 0.001 and P = 0.001, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: TikTok videos\' quality on hysteroscopy seems unsatisfactory and misinformative, with low understandability and actionability scores. Videos recorded by healthcare workers show higher quality and less misinformation than those by patients. Raising the awareness regarding the low quality of medical information on social media is crucial to increase future reliability and trustworthiness.

BACKGROUND: Fake health-related news has spread rapidly through the internet, causing harm to individuals and society. Despite interventions, a fenbendazole scandal recently spread among patients with lung cancer in South Korea. It is crucial to intervene appropriately to prevent the spread of fake news.
OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the appropriate timing of interventions to minimize the side effects of fake news.
METHODS: A simulation was conducted using the susceptible-infected-recovered (SIR) model, which is a representative model of the virus spread mechanism. We applied this model to the fake news spread mechanism. The parameters were set similarly to those in the digital environment, where the fenbendazole scandal occurred. NetLogo, an agent-based model, was used as the analytical tool.
RESULTS: Fake news lasted 278 days in the absence of interventions. As a result of adjusting and analyzing the timing of the intervention in response to the fenbendazole scandal, we found that faster intervention leads to a shorter duration of fake news (intervention at 54 days = fake news that lasted for 210 days; intervention at 16 days = fake news that lasted for 187 days; and intervention at 10 days = fake news that lasted for 157 days). However, no significant differences were observed when the intervention was performed within 10 days.
CONCLUSIONS: Interventions implemented within 10 days were effective in reducing the duration of the spread of fake news. Our findings suggest that timely intervention is critical for preventing the spread of fake news in the digital environment. Additionally, a monitoring system that can detect fake news should be developed for a rapid response.

UNASSIGNED: Healthcare-associated infections have a significant impact on public health, and many patients and their next-of-kin are seeking information on the internet. The study aimed to assess the quality of online written content about healthcare-associated infections available in English, Romanian, and Hungarian languages.
UNASSIGNED: The study sample included 75 websites, 25 for each language subgroup. The assessment involved examining the general characteristics, adherence to established credibility criteria, and the completeness and accuracy of informational content. The evaluation was conducted using a topic-specific, evidence-based benchmark. Two evaluators independently graded completeness and accuracy; scores were recorded on a scale from 0 to 10. A comparative analysis of websites was performed, considering pertinent characteristics, and potential factors influencing information quality were subjected to testing. The statistical significance was set at 0.05.
UNASSIGNED: For the overall study sample, the average credibility, completeness, and accuracy scores were 5.1 (SD 1.7), 2.4 (SD 1.5), and 5.9 (SD 1.0), respectively. Pairwise comparison tests revealed that English websites rated significantly higher than Romanian and Hungarian websites on all three quality measures (P<0.05). Website specialization, ownership, and main goal were not associated with credibility or content ratings. However, conventional medicine websites consistently scored higher than alternative medicine and other websites across all three information quality measures (P<0.05). Credibility scores were positively but weakly correlated with completeness (rho=0.273; P=0.0176) and accuracy scores (rho=0.365; P=0.0016).
UNASSIGNED: The overall quality ratings of information about healthcare-associated infections on English, Romanian, and Hungarian websites ranged from intermediate to low. The description of information regarding the symptoms and prevention of healthcare-associated infections was notably unsatisfactory. The study identified website characteristics possibly associated with higher-quality online sources about healthcare-associated infections, but additional research is needed to establish robust evidence.

There are many myths regarding Alzheimer\'s disease (AD) that have been circulated on the internet, each exhibiting varying degrees of accuracy, inaccuracy, and misinformation. Large language models, such as ChatGPT, may be a valuable tool to help assess these myths for veracity and inaccuracy; however, they can induce misinformation as well. This study assesses ChatGPT\'s ability to identify and address AD myths with reliable information. We conducted a cross-sectional study of attending geriatric medicine clinicians\' evaluation of ChatGPT (GPT 4.0) responses to 16 selected AD myths. We prompted ChatGPT to express its opinion on each myth and implemented a survey using REDCap to determine the degree to which clinicians agreed with the accuracy of each of ChatGPT\'s explanations. We also collected their explanations of any disagreements with ChatGPT\'s responses. We used a 5-category Likert-type scale with a score ranging from -2 to 2 to quantify clinicians\' agreement in each aspect of the evaluation. The clinicians (n = 10) were generally satisfied with ChatGPT\'s explanations. Among the 16 myths, the clinicians were generally satisfied with these explanations, with (mean [SD] score of 1.1[±0.3]). Most clinicians selected \"Agree\" or \"Strongly Agree\" for each statement. Some statements obtained a small number of \"Disagree\" responses. There were no \"Strongly Disagree\" responses. Most surveyed health care professionals acknowledged the potential value of ChatGPT in mitigating AD misinformation; however, the need for more refined and detailed explanations of the disease\'s mechanisms and treatments was highlighted.