Web-Based Surveillance of Public Information Needs for Informing Preconception Interventions

<div><p>Background</p><p>The risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes can be minimized through the adoption of healthy lifestyles before pregnancy by women of childbearing age. Initiatives for promotion of preconception health may be difficult to implement. Internet can be used to build tailored health interventions through identification of the public's information needs. To this aim, we developed a semi-automatic web-based system for monitoring Google searches, web pages and activity on social networks, regarding preconception health.</p><p>Methods</p><p>Based on the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists guidelines and on the actual search behaviors of Italian Internet users, we defined a set of keywords targeting preconception care topics. Using these keywords, we analyzed the usage of Google search engine and identified web pages containing preconception care recommendations. We also monitored how the selected web pages were shared on social networks. We analyzed discrepancies between searched and published information and the sharing pattern of the topics.</p><p>Results</p><p>We identified 1,807 Google search queries which generated a total of 1,995,030 searches during the study period. Less than 10% of the reviewed pages contained preconception care information and in 42.8% information was consistent with ACOG guidelines. Facebook was the most used social network for sharing. Nutrition, Chronic Diseases and Infectious Diseases were the most published and searched topics. Regarding Genetic Risk and Folic Acid, a high search volume was not associated to a high web page production, while Medication pages were more frequently published than searched. Vaccinations elicited high sharing although web page production was low; this effect was quite variable in time.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>Our study represent a resource to prioritize communication on specific topics on the web, to address misconceptions, and to tailor interventions to specific populations.</p></div

Web pages publication.

<p>^a Percentage on total number of pages.</p><p>^b Percentage on topic pages.</p><p>^c Percentage on topic pages.</p><p>^d Percentage on topic information pages.</p><p>Web pages publication.</p

Google search data by topic and their corresponding volumes.

<p>^a Percentage on total number of queries.</p><p>^b Percentage on total search volume.</p><p>^c Percentage on topic volume</p><p>Google search data by topic and their corresponding volumes.</p

Sharing volumes and the sharing per page (s/p) ratio for each topic.

<p>^a percentage on total sharing events</p><p>Sharing volumes and the sharing per page (s/p) ratio for each topic.</p

Correlation between the volumes of information pages with searches (A), and with the sharing/page ratio by topic (B).

<p>Correlation between the volumes of information pages with searches (A), and with the sharing/page ratio by topic (B).</p

Cystic fibrosis cases missed by newborn bloodspot screening—towards a consistent definition and data acquisition

Repeated European surveys of newborn bloodspot screening (NBS) have shown varied strategies for collecting missed cases, and information on data collection differs among countries/regions, hampering data comparison. The ECFS Neonatal Screening Working Group defined missed cases by NBS as either false negatives, protocol-related, concerning analytical issues, or non-protocol-related, concerning pre- and post-analytical issues. A questionnaire has been designed and sent to all key workers identified in each NBS programme to assess the feasibility of collecting data on missed cases, the stage of the NBS programme when the system failed, and individual patient data on each missed case.</p