INTERNET EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES: USE AND KNOWLEDGE-ABILITY OF INTERNET AND TERTIARY-CARE DYSPEPSIA AND GERD PATIENT CLINIC POPULATIONS

R Cawdron, D Armstrong

Division of Gastroenterology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario

BACKGROUND: Despite the cost and potential benefits of patient education resources (PER), little is known of their use or impact in various dyspepsia and GERD patient populations.
AIM: To compare PER use among dyspepsia and GERD internet and clinic patients and its association with patient knowledge.
METHODS: Gastroenterology clinic out-patients and internet respondents with features or symptoms of upper GI disease including GERD, non-ulcer dyspepsia, H. pylori, peptic ulcer disease completed a survey containing the Dyspepsia and GERD Knowledge Questionnaire (DGKQ) and items regarding PER use. The respondents' dominant symptom was used to assign the undiagnosed to a disease category. ANOVA and multiple linear regression were used to examine group differences and predictors of knowledge.
RESULTS: The 84 clinic respondents were significantly older (51 v. 41 yrs; p<0.001) and had a lower proportion with some post-secondary education (PSE) (53% v. 82%; p<0.001) compared to the 66 internet respondents. Clinic patients reported a high degree of internet access (males: 76%; females: 60%), and 83% of web respondents had seen a physician for symptoms. There were no significant differences in Dyspepsia and GERD subscale scores of respective dyspepsia and GERD Internet and clinic patients. Among clinic respondents, PER use did not predict DGKQ scores, but level of education and female sex did (p< 0.001). However, only recent use of PER was a significant predictor of DGKQ scores for internet respondents. This may be due to the low proportion of internet respondents without any PSE and the significantly (p<0.001) lesser use of PER by clinic patients in the last month (15% v. 47%) or ever (32% v. 76%). Subgroup analysis indicated male internet respondents scored better on the DGKQ (36.3% v 17.2%; p<0.001).
CONCLUSION: On average, internet respondents seem to be more highly educated and motivated to use PER, but only males demonstrate better knowledge of their dyspepsia or GERD compared to outpatient counterparts. Preliminary results suggest the DGKQ is a useful tool for assessing dyspepsia and GERD internet and clinic patients.

Funded by CDHF/AstraZeneca Canada.