Hospitals misleading patients about benefits of robotic surgery, study suggests

A recent Johns Hopkins study has found an estimated 4 in 10 hospital websites publicize the use of robotic surgery — with many touting robotic surgery’s clinical superiority despite a lack of scientific evidence in support of their claims. The findings were reported online in the Journal for Healthcare Quality.

“The public regards a hospital’s official website as an authoritative source of medical information in the voice of a physician,” study leader Marty Makary, MD, MPH, stated in a Johns Hopkins press release. “But in this case, hospitals have outsourced patient education content to the device manufacturer, allowing industry to make claims that are unsubstantiated by the literature.”

Abundance of promotional materials

The investigators systematically analyzed 400 randomly-selected U.S. hospital websites in June 2010, collecting data on the presence and location of robotic surgery information. This included, according to the study abstract: use of images or text provided by the manufacturer, use of direct links to the manufacturer’s website, statements of clinical superiority, statements of improved cancer outcome, mentions of a comparison group for a statement, citation of supporting data, and mention of specific risks.

According to the study, approximately 41% of hospital websites carried descriptions of robotic surgery. Thirty-seven percent of these websites made robotic surgery a presence on their homepage, 73% made use of manufacturer-provided stock images or text, and 33% provided a link to the manufacturer’s website.

Furthermore, the authors noted, “statements of clinical superiority were made on 86% of websites … and 2% described a reference group. No hospital website mentioned risks.” The most common claims of clinical superiority included less pain (85%), shorter recovery (86%), less scarring (80%) and less blood loss (78%).

Overestimation

The findings, the authors concluded, point toward hospitals overestimating the benefits of robotic surgery in their promotional materials — and not including information about the potential risks. Additionally, it was noted, these promotional materials seem strongly influenced by manufacturers.

Proponents, according to the release, say robot-assisted operations use smaller incisions, are more precise and result in less pain and shorter hospital stays. The study authors, however, challenge these claims as unsubstantiated — noting in the release there are no randomized, controlled studies showing patient benefit in robotic surgery.

“New doesn’t always mean better,” he added, noting robotic surgeries tend to take longer, cost more and keep the patient under anesthesia longer. “This is a really scary trend. We’re allowing industry to speak on behalf of hospitals and make unsubstantiated claims.”

Reference:

Jin LX, Ibrahim AA, Newman NA, et al. Robotic surgery claims on United States hospital websites. J Healthc Qual. Article first published online May 17, 2011. doi: 10.1111/j.1945-1474.2011.00148.x.

www.hopkinsmedicine.org

Follow OrthoSuperSite.com on Twitter