Online patient resources for deceased donor and live donor kidney recipients: a comparative analysis of readability

BACKGROUND: The Internet has extensive resources for kidney transplantation recipients. Half of the population reads below a seventh-grade level. Previous studies showed that living donor recipients have higher health literacy rates compared with deceased donor recipients. There has been no study comparing the readability of online living donor recipient materials versus deceased donor recipient materials. METHODS: Analysis was performed using eight readability scales on the top 10 websites for live donor and deceased donor kidney transplantation. Analysis was performed through the Readability Studio Software. USA reading grade level was determined for each site. RESULTS: Overall, the mean reading level for the living donor materials was 12.54 (range 9.2–17) and for the deceased donor materials, 12.87 (range 8.7–17, P = 0.73), corresponding to a university level. None of the sites met the seventh-grade level recommended by the National Institute of Health. CONCLUSIONS: The readability of online materials remains too high for the corresponding health literacy rates among patients requiring kidney transplantation. Specifically, the lower health literacy rates among deceased donor recipients does not mirror the readability of online materials provided at a university level. This may affect decision-making, contributing to a smaller proportion of patients of a lower socioeconomic status and those with poor English language skills pursuing live donor organs.