Abstract
Introduction
Medical websites and discussion boards are commonly used by patients to obtain information.
The online forum FrankTalk.org provides a venue specifically for men to discuss sexual dysfunction and particularly
inflatable penile prosthesis (IPP). By querying and better understanding the content
of this forum related to implants, we can better understand patient concerns before
and after IPP.
Aim
The aim of this study is to understand the main topics being discussed about IPPs
online and to use these topics to understand patient concerns and patient needs and
to improve care.
Methods
Messages posted in a 6-month window from January 2018 to June 2018 under the topic
“Implant” were identified on FrankTalk.org. Posts were broken down into preoperative and postoperative and then organized using
a 3-stage analysis to determine central themes of each post: open coding, axial coding,
and selective coding.
Main Outcome Measure
The primary outcome measure is the prevalence of each selective code.
Results
Of all 587 posts, 304 were written preoperatively with the most common theme being
“Size” (23.0%), followed by “seeking support” (18.4%). 283 posts were considered postoperative,
of which the most common theme was “Concern about healing” (22.6 %) which questioned
if they needed to see a physician, followed by size concerns (20.1%).When analyzed
with the 3-stage coding system, there were a total of 41 axial codes which were organized
into 6 selective codes: “Social Support” (27.8% of all posts), “Pre-Operative Worries”
(23.58%),“Technical Issues” (11.1%), “Prosthesis Logistics” (14.37%), “Post-Operative
Worries” (20.22%), “Forum and Misc” (2.93%) for topics outside the scope of penile
prosthesis.
Clinical Implications
The percentage of men seeking medical opinion is concerning, and providers should
consider using resources to better educate patients on normal postoperative findings.
Implanters should continue to preoperatively counsel patients on size-related changes
with surgery.
Strength & Limitations
Strengths include the use of a common online website for men to discuss IPPs and a
systematic coding system. Limitations include the applicability of these results to
nonheterosexual men as these are likely oversampled in this population. The inherent
bias of those willing to post on an online forum may have influenced results along
with no oversight for factual accuracy.
Conclusion
Patients use online discussion boards like FrankTalk.org for social support, medical advice, and validation of their concerns. Providers should
be aware of these online topic focuses to help open a discussion with patients about
concerns they may feel are difficult to approach with providers.
Lu JY, Miller EJ, Welliver C. A Thematic Analysis of the Online Discussion Board,
FrankTalk, Regarding Penile Implant. J Sex Med 2020;17:325–330.
Key Words
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: December 19, 2019
Accepted:
November 4,
2019
Received:
August 12,
2019
Footnotes
Conflicts of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest.
Funding: None.
Identification
Copyright
Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of the International Society for Sexual Medicine.
