Are online searches for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) related to media or epidemiology? A cross-sectional study.
Int J Infect Dis
; 97: 386-390, 2020 Aug.
Artículo
en Inglés
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-597920
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Previous studies on the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) have found strong correlations between online searches and the epidemiology of the disease.AIM:
Our aim was to determine if online searches for COVID-19 related to international media announcements or national epidemiology.METHODS:
Searches for "coronavirus" were made on Google Trends from December 31, 2019 to April 13, 2020 for 40 European countries. The online COVID-19 searches for all countries were correlated with each other. COVID-10 epidemiology (i.e. incidence and mortality) was correlated with the national online searches. Major announcements by the World Health Organization (WHO) were taken into consideration with peaks in online searches. Correlations were made using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient.RESULTS:
Overall, the online searches for COVID-19 were not correlated with the actual incidence and mortality of COVID-19. The mean Spearman correlation for incidence was 0.20 (range -0.66 to 0.76) and for mortality was 0.35 (range -0.75 to 0.85). Online searches in Europe were all strongly synchronized with each other; a mean Spearman correlation of 0.93 (range 0.62 to 0.99).CONCLUSIONS:
Online searches for COVID-19 in Europe are not correlated with epidemiology but strongly correlated with international WHO announcements. Our study challenges previous Google Trends studies and emphasizes the role of the WHO in raising awareness of a new disease.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
Disponible
Colección:
Bases de datos internacionales
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Neumonía Viral
/
Infecciones por Coronavirus
/
Motor de Búsqueda
/
Medios de Comunicación de Masas
Tipo de estudio:
Estudio observacional
/
Ensayo controlado aleatorizado
Límite:
Humanos
País/Región como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
Inglés
Revista:
Int J Infect Dis
Asunto de la revista:
Enfermedades Transmisibles
Año:
2020
Tipo del documento:
Artículo
País de afiliación:
J.ijid.2020.06.028
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