ArticleJournal of medical Internet research2013
A method for the design and development of medical or health care information websites to optimize search engine results page rankings on Google.
Article in Journal of medical Internet research, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Advances in e-learning in undergraduate clinical medicine: a systematic review.BMC medical education · 2022Pooled it
- Plastic Surgery Search Engine Optimization in the Artificial Intelligence Era.Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open · 2026Article
- Quality evaluation of online platforms information for retail of prescription medicines in China: an observational study of the case of paroxetine.BMC medical informatics and decision making · 2026Observational
- Do Healthcare Professionals Agree with Delphi Expert Recommendations for Instrument Assisted Soft-Tissue Mobilization Precautions and Contraindications? An Exploratory Survey.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- How Do Physical Therapists and Athletic Trainers Maintain Their Physical Fitness? A Descriptive Survey Study.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2025Article
- Online Support Groups for Family Caregivers: Scoping Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Article
- Internet Search Results for Older Adult Physical Activity Guidelines: Scoping Review.JMIR formative research · 2022Article
- Kinesiology Tape: A Descriptive Survey of Healthcare Professionals in the United States.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2021Article
- Availability and readability of online patient information on clubfoot: assessment of paediatric hospital clubfoot web pages.Journal of children's orthopaedics · 2021Article
- Benefits of Structured Engagement with Target Audiences of a Health Website: Study Design for a Multi-Case Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Mechanical Percussion Devices: A Survey of Practice Patterns Among Healthcare Professionals.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2021Article
- Google Medical Update: Why Is the Search Engine Decreasing Visibility of Health and Medical Information Websites?International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Article
- Study of online information for anxious patients requiring dental extractions.British dental journal · 2019Article
- Patterns of internet and social media use in colorectal surgery.BMC surgery · 2019Article
- ROLLER MASSAGE: SURVEY OF PHYSICAL THERAPY PROFESSIONALS AND A COMMENTARY ON CLINICAL STANDARDS- PART II.International journal of sports physical therapy · 2018Article
- Online Decision Support Tool for Personalized Cancer Symptom Checking in the Community (REACT): Acceptability, Feasibility, and Usability Study.JMIR cancer · 2018Article
- [Comprehensibility of online-based patient education material in ophthalmology].Der Ophthalmologe : Zeitschrift der Deutschen Ophthalmologischen Gesellschaft · 2017Article
- A Blended Intervention for Patients With Knee and Hip Osteoarthritis in the Physical Therapy Practice: Development and a Pilot Study.JMIR research protocols · 2016Article
- Transrectal Ultrasound Guided Biopsy of the Prostate: Is the Information Accessible, Usable, Reliable and Readable?Current urology · 2015Article
- Quality of websites of obstetrics and gynecology departments: a cross-sectional study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2015Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe Internet is a widely used source of information for patients searching for medical/health care information. While many studies have assessed existing medical/health care information on the Internet, relatively few have examined methods for design and delivery of such websites, particularly those aimed at the general public.
objectiveThis study describes a method of evaluating material for new medical/health care websites, or for assessing those already in existence, which is correlated with higher rankings on Google's Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
methodsA website quality assessment (WQA) tool was developed using criteria related to the quality of the information to be contained in the website in addition to an assessment of the readability of the text. This was retrospectively applied to assess existing websites that provide information about generic medicines. The reproducibility of the WQA tool and its predictive validity were assessed in this study.
resultsThe WQA tool demonstrated very high reproducibility (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.95) between 2 independent users. A moderate to strong correlation was found between WQA scores and rankings on Google SERPs. Analogous correlations were seen between rankings and readability of websites as determined by Flesch Reading Ease and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level scores.
conclusionsThe use of the WQA tool developed in this study is recommended as part of the design phase of a medical or health care information provision website, along with assessment of readability of the material to be used. This may ensure that the website performs better on Google searches. The tool can also be used retrospectively to make improvements to existing websites, thus, potentially enabling better Google search result positions without incurring the costs associated with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) professionals or paid promotion.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.