Quality and readability of Turkish online patient information websites on premature ejaculation: a cross-sectional study

Background Patients frequently seek online information about stigmatized conditions such as premature ejaculation (PE), yet the quality and readability of Turkish-language PE websites are uncharacterized. We evaluated the readability, information quality, and transparency of Turkish-language PE websites. Methods In this cross-sectional study, Google.com.tr was searched (30 June–1 July 2026) using two Turkish PE terms; the first 5 result pages per term were screened, yielding 65 eligible websites. Readability was assessed with two Turkish-validated formulas (Atesman; Bezirci-Yılmaz), information quality with the DISCERN instrument, and transparency with the JAMA benchmark criteria; DISCERN and JAMA were each scored independently by two raters. Physician–hospital differences and readability–quality correlations were examined using non-parametric tests. Results Websites were difficult to read (median Atesman 47.23 [IQR 42.62–51.57]; 69.2% “difficult” or “very difficult”) and on the Bezirci-Yılmaz scale, corresponded to an academic readability level; none were “easy.” Information quality was modest (median DISCERN 39.00 [IQR 33.00–44.00]; 47.7% poor/very poor, 12.3% good/excellent). Transparency was limited (median JAMA 2.00 [IQR 1.50–2.00]); attribution (21.5%) and disclosure (10.8%) were rarely met, and only 1.5% satisfied all four criteria. Physician and hospital websites showed no statistically significant difference on any metric, and no significant association was detected between readability and quality (all p > 0.05). Inter-rater agreement was excellent (ICC 0.96–1.00). Conclusions Turkish-language PE websites were generally difficult to read, with an academic-level readability, and showed limited information quality and transparency. Improving readability, source attribution, and disclosure is an actionable priority for clinicians, institutions, and content developers seeking to enhance the usefulness of online patient information. Clinical trial number Not applicable.