RESUMEN
Objective: WhatsApp is the most frequently used social media platform in Saudi Arabia. Inaccurate information could negatively impact public health. The number of studies worldwide investigating health-related misinformation in social media increased steadily, with limited data from Arabic-speaking communities. This study aimed to estimate the validity and safety of Arabic-language health information messages circulated on WhatsApp and identify the different categories of these messages based on their credibility. Participants and Methods: A descriptive, analytical cross-sectional study was conducted from February to April 2021. A total of 374 students were randomly selected from the common first preparatory year college at King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and participated by sharing up to three health-related WhatsApp messages per student that they or their relatives had recently read. Four board-certified physicians reviewed and classified the messages based on their credibility and sources. Results: 282 students provided 326 messages (1.2 messages per student). Most messages (86%) had either invalid or inaccurate content, and 83.7% came from unknown sources. Only 26 messages (8%) of the total were written by trusted scientific sources. Most of the messages from unknown sources or unqualified persons were either invalid or invalid, with potential health risks for the public, and the difference from trusted sources was statistically significant. Conclusion: This study showed a high percentage of inaccurate and invalid health-related messages on WhatsApp. Invalid messages with potential health risks were authored mostly by unknown sources or unqualified persons. Most health messages written by trusted authorities and qualified persons were valid. Trusted scientific authorities should thus be more active in public education on social media platforms. They should advise their communities on how to discern the validity of such messages. More efforts are needed to guide patients from where to obtain accurate and valid health information.
RESUMEN
Background/Aims: The most common cancer among men and the third most common among women in Saudi Arabia is colon cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the yield of the fecal occult blood test (FOBT) used as a screening tool for colon cancer. Settings and Design: Medical records of all patients above the age of 50 years who had visited the Family Medicine clinic at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and who had undergone the FOBT screening between January 2002 and March 2017 were retrospectively reviewed. Materials and Methods: We collected patients' demographic data, FOBT results, and colonoscopy pathology reports results. Statistical Analysis: Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science Version 25 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Results: We included 2179 patients in this study. The mean age was 59.8 ± 8 years. As a result of the FOBT screening, 19.7% of the patients had a positive FOBT. Colon cancer accounted for 3.5% of all abnormal colonoscopy pathology reports. The Saudi age-standardized incidence rate (ASIR) in our study was 26.56 per 100,000 persons. Conclusion: FOBT is a feasible tool that can be used for colon cancer screening in primary care settings. The Saudi ASIR in our study was higher than the Saudi Cancer Registry, but it was still lower in comparison to other countries. We recommend the establishment of a national community-based colon cancer screening program.