Investigation of internet search engine queries of the symptoms related to Covid-19 from Turkey

Abstract

Objective: In this study, we aimed a retrospective analysis of internet search engine queries related to the symptoms of Covid-19 from Turkey before and during the pandemic period. Material and Method: The data were obtained using Google Trends. The keywords were “fever, weakness-fatigue, cough, sore throat, muscle pain, diarrhea, headache, back pain, conjunctivitis, low back pain, shortness of breath, loss of taste and smell” among the clinical findings of Covid-19. Results: The queries related to Covid-19 symptoms reached the highest level in the days following the official announcement of the first case in Turkey. The queries increased by 230% compared to the day before the announcement. The queries increased by approximately 66% compared to the previous day, following the official announcement. A significant difference was found between the frequency of the queries as fever, diarrhea, headache, conjunctivitis, cough, shortness of breath, loss of smell and taste, sore throat, back pain and muscle pain between pre-Covid-19 and Covid-19 periods (p <0,01). There was no significant difference in terms of weakness-fatigue, low back pain symptoms queries (p>0,01). Conclusion: The frequency of the queries increased significantly in the Covid-19 period compared to the pre-Covid-19 period. In order to predict outbreaks and their effects, the analysis of search engine queries can enable people to be informed in advance about the situations that may occur and to take the necessary measures before the pandemic. This can assist decision-makers in planning health services effectively.

Keywords

• Covid-19
• internet
• symptoms
• public health informatics

COVID-19 salgınıyla ilişkili semptomların Türkiye’den gerçekleştirilen internet arama motoru sorgularının incelenmesi

Abstract

Amaç: Bu çalışmada COVID-19 öncesi ve pandemi döneminde COVID-19 semptomlarına ilişkin Türkiye’den gerçekleştirilen internet arama motoru sorgulamalarının retrospektif olarak analiz edilmesi amaçlanmıştır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Veriler Google Trends uygulaması kullanılarak elde edilmiştir. Kullanılan anahtar kelimeler Ankara Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi tarafından hazırlanan COVID-19 kılavuzunda belirtilen klinik bulgulardan “ateş, halsizlik-yorgunluk, öksürük, boğaz ağrısı, kas ağrısı, ishal, baş ağrısı, sırt ağrısı, konjonktivit, bel ağrısı, nefes darlığı, koku ve tat kaybı” alınarak gerçekleştirilmiştir. Türkiye’den gerçekleştirilen COVID-19 sorgularının ani artış gösterdiği 20 Ocak 2020 tarihi ve sonrası “COVID-19 dönemi”, 20 Ocak 2020 ve öncesi dönem ise “COVID-19 öncesi” olarak ikiye ayrılmıştır. Bulgular: COVID-19 ile ilişkili aramalarda Türkiye’de resmi olarak ilk vakanın duyurulmasını izleyen günlerde en yüksek sorgu seviyelerine ulaşıldı. Resmî açıklamanın yapıldığı gün ilgili sorgular, bir önceki güne göre %230 oranında artmış olup, resmî açıklamayı takip eden günde söz konusu sorguların yaklaşık %66 oranında arttığı görüldü. COVID-19 öncesi ve COVID-19 dönemleri arasında; ateş, ishal, baş ağrısı, konjonktivit, öksürük, nefes darlığı, koku ve tat kaybı, boğaz ağrısı, sırt ağrısı ve kas ağrısı şikayetlerini sorgulama sıklıkları arasında iki dönem arasında anlamlı bir farklılık tespit edildi (p<0,01). Halsizlik- yorgunluk, bel ağrısı semptomları sorgusu açısından anlamlı bir fark bulunamadı (p>0,01). Tartışma: Kullanılan anahtar kelimelerin aranma sıklığının, COVID-19 döneminde, öncesi döneme göre anlamlı olarak arttığı tespit edildi. Salgınların ve etkilerinin önceden tahminlenmesi amacıyla arama motoru sorgularının analizi, gerekli tedbirlerin alınması ve karar vericilerin sağlık hizmetlerini etkin olarak planlamalarına imkân sağlayabilir.

Keywords

• halk sağlığı bilişimi
• COVID-19
• internet
• semptomlar

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