Platelet-Rich Plasma for Knee Osteoarthritis: Internet Marketing and Patient Education—An Appraisal of Content for Websites with the Greatest Search Engine Visibility

Author:

Shai Shemesh S.12ORCID,Shay Ribenzaft Z.12,Pretell-Mazzini Juan3ORCID,Tal Frenkel Rutenberg12,Nir Cohen12,Barak Haviv24,Steven Velkes12

Affiliation:

1. Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Beilinson Campus, Rabin Medical Center, Petah-Tikva, Israel

2. Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

3. Musculoskeletal Oncology Division, Department of Orthopedics, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

4. Arthroscopy and Sports Injuries Unit, Hasharon Hospital, Rabin Medical Center, Petah-Tikva, Israel

Abstract

Objective The internet is increasingly being used as a resource for health-related information by the general public. We sought to establish the authorship, content, and accuracy of the information available online regarding platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy for knee osteoarthritis. Design Top 200 search results from each of the 3 leading search engines available online (Google, Yahoo!, Bing) were screened, and 181 websites were finally reviewed for content with emphasis on specific claims, comparing between websites authored by private physicians/groups and other authorship types. Results Nearly 80% of the websites claimed that PRP injections for osteoarthritis of the knee improve patients’ pain. A total of 42.8% of the private websites and 27.6% of nonprivate websites have stated that the procedure can delay or eliminate the need for future surgery. Costs were only mentioned by few (11.6%), and mainly by the nonprivate websites. Both website groups were unlikely to mention that PRP therapy is not the treatment of choice for end-stage knee osteoarthritis (7.9% of private and 17.2% of the nonprivate sites), or to state that patients with less advanced disease may benefit more from the treatment (11.8% and 20.6%, respectively). Private websites were less likely to refer to peer-reviewed literature (18.4% vs. 41.4%) and were more than 3 times less likely to mention lack of adequate evidence (13.2% vs. 48.2%). Conclusions Patients seeking online information regarding PRP therapy are vulnerable to websites presenting a narrow viewpoint of this treatment modality, putting emphasis on unsubstantiated benefits while disregarding potential drawbacks and concerns.

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Subject

Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation,Biomedical Engineering,Immunology and Allergy

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