YouTube as a source of patient information on brain aneurysms: a content-quality and audience engagement analysis

Abstract

Introduction:The internet allows patients to access a vast amount of health information. We aimed to evaluate the credibility of YouTube videos that members of the public are accessing on brain aneurysms, and to evaluate what characteristics drive audience engagement. Material and methods:The first 50 videos for each of the following search terms were taken for analysis: 'brain aneurysm' , 'cerebral aneurysm' and 'intracranial aneurysm' . The quality of each video was evaluated by two neurosurgeons and two medical students independently using the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the DISCERN instruments. Qualitative and quantitative video data was analysed for quality and audience engagement. Inter-rater agreement was ascertained.Results: Out of a total of 150 videos, 70 met the inclusion criteria. The mean total DISCERN score was 36.5 ± 8.4 (out of 75 points), indicating that the videos were of poor quality. The mean JAMA score was 2.7 ± 0.7 (out of 4 points). Inter-rater agreement between the four raters was excellent (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.90 for DISCERN and 0.93 for JAMA). Most videos were uploaded by hospitals (50%) or educational health channels (30%). Videos had a higher number of average daily views when they included animation (P = 0.0093) and diagrams (P = 0.0422). Conclusions:YouTube is a poor source of patient information on brain aneurysms. Our quality and audience engagement analysis may help content creators (i.e. hospital staff and physicians) to create more holistic, educational and engaging medical videos concerning brain aneurysms. Physicians could usefully refer their patients to the highest quality videos that we have found.

YouTube as a source of patient information on deep vein thrombosis

“…All videos were given at least 1 point according to the currency of the JAMA benchmarks criteria as the upload date of the videos is known. Despite this, the JAMA score remained low for videos, particularly since references and sources are not clearly mentioned in most YouTube videos, as reported by Szmuda et al [16] The total DISCERN score, total JAMA score, and total DVT patient information score are higher in videos where physicians are the main speakers compared to other videos. The fact that there was no difference in the video durations between the two groups suggests that the physicians use time more effectively by using more technical terms in the videos.…”

“…There are some studies in the literature evaluating the quality of videos about other diseases on YouTube. [15,16] We have determined that the quality of the informative videos on DVT is moderate compared to the DISCERN score. Considering that physicians are the main speakers in most of the videos, we think the mean DISCERN score is low.…”

YouTube as a Source of Patient Information for Meningiomas: A Content Quality and Audience Engagement Analysis

“…Neurosurgical topics on YT, such as hydrocephalus, glioblastoma, arteriovenous malformations, and brain aneurysms, tend to be of insufficient educational value [ 2 , 4 , 9 , 10 ]. This study confirms that YT material presented on the topic of meningiomas is also of low quality.…”

“…So far, the quality of videos relating to neurological and neurosurgical conditions, such as migraine, glioblastoma, stroke or brain aneurysm, has been assessed [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]. Only one study evaluated the quality of YT videos about meningiomas.…”

YouTube as a source of patient information on awake craniotomy: Analysis of content quality and user engagement

“…Previous articles have reported on the reliability of YouTube for patient information on spinal fusion, meningiomas, gliomas, aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, transsphenoidal surgery, hydrocephalus, radiosurgery and neuromodulation. 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 To date, no article has evaluated the quality of YouTube videos on awake brain surgery. An awake craniotomy allows cortical mapping to identify and preserve vital areas for speech and motor control while removing a tumor.…”