Completeness and accuracy of drug information in Wikipedia articles

Abstract

The study examined the quality of Wikipedia drug information in terms of completeness and accuracy compared to Medscape Drug Reference. Thirty commonly used drugs in Iran were identified and related articles were searched and retrieved via., Persian and English Wikipedia and evaluated based on 7 criteria (indication, dosage and administration, adverse events, contraindications, drug-drug interactions, use in pregnancy and lactation, and mechanism of action). Medscape Drug Reference was used to verify accuracy and completeness. The results of one sample t-test showed the mean of the criteria studied in the Persian and English Wikipedia were significantly lower than the highest achievable score of Medscape Drug Reference (P<0.0001). The mean (SD) score for quality (completeness and accuracy) was 17.23(9.19) and 26.43(7.23) out of 42 in Persian and English Wikipedia. Paired t-test showed that there was a significant difference between the quality of Persian vs. English articles (P<0.0001).