Resident Mount Sinai Hospital New York, New York, United States
Background: The average reading level in the US is at an 8th-grade level, while health-related materials are often written at a 10th-grade level or higher. Dyslexia is a reading disorder characterized by difficulties with decoding and comprehension, affecting both children and adults. Dyslexia has been linked to genetics, with an increased risk when there is a positive family history. Objective: This study aims to assess the readability levels of 50 websites written about dyslexia, hypothesizing that websites targeting children with dyslexia and their parents, who may also have reading difficulties, should be written at an appropriately lower readability level. Design/Methods: This study analyzes the readability of 50 web articles on dyslexia using six readability formulas: Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Gunning Fog Score, SMOG Index, Coleman Liau Index, and Automated Readability Index. The search term "What is dyslexia" was used on Google. Each article was analyzed using the WEB FX online calculation website. The readability goal for these websites was set at 5th grade, a level recommended for low-literacy patients. Results: The study found the lowest mean readability score was 11.59 (close to 12th-grade level) on the SMOG Index, while the highest was 15.39 on the Coleman Liau Index (college level). The median scores showed that the readability levels were generally high, with none of the websites having a score lower than 5.0 (5th-grade level) except for one website that scored 5.0 only in the Automated Readability Index.
Conclusion(s): This study, analyzing 50 websites related to dyslexia, found that most websites were difficult to read, with a readability level much higher than the standard set for individuals with reading difficulties. The mean score of the websites was at a 12th-grade reading level, hindering individuals with dyslexia from understanding crucial information related to their condition. Since dyslexia can run in families, this affects not only the children with reading disorders but also their parents from understanding the content, creating a barrier for individuals seeking diagnosis and support. There is a need for improved accessibility to websites that provide information about dyslexia, especially if their target audience is those with reading difficulties.
