Analysis of the Readability of Package Inserts for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Medications Used in Turkey

Abstract

Aim: The readability level of a written text is directly related to how well the text is understood.There are precise formulas that may be used to test readability objectively. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the readability of the ADHD medication package inserts that are presently in use in Turkey. Methods: 23 medication package inserts for ADHD in total were categorized based on their types. The Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency (https://www.titck.gov.tr/kubkt) provided the most updated package leaflets for the medications in these categories. The Ateşman and Bezirci-Yılmaz readability formulae, which are relevant to Turkish texts, were used to assess package inserts. Results: The Ateşman reading score was calculated to be 72.2 (7-8th grade) on average. The Bezirci-Yılmaz formula has a reading level equivalent to grades 7-8, which corresponds to the primary school level. Based on the 2022 TUIK data in Turkey, it was found that the reading level was suitable for the average education level, except for the SNRI group (high school level). Conclusion: Given the aforementioned information, we maintain the viewpoint that pharmaceutical package inserts for psychiatric medications ought to ideally contain content written at the level of a primary school (7-8th grade).