Analysis of YouTube hair loss treatment information: What makes for engaging content?

Abstract

Patients are increasingly seeking effective hair loss treatments. The internet and social media are popular sources of health information, but the quality and reliability of the content available to patients is highly variable. More than two thirds of American adults reported using YouTube in 2019. We investigated public interest in hair loss treatment information on YouTube and evaluated the quality of health information in videos with high viewer engagement. In July 2020, we used Google Trends, limited to YouTube searches, to analyze relative interest in hair loss treatments worldwide. We searched YouTube using nonsurgical and surgical hair loss treatment terms and we analyzed the retrieved video content. The DISCERN tool was used to evaluate the quality of health information in the hair loss treatment videos with highest viewer engagement. There is increasing public interest in YouTube searches for hair loss treatments. A large number of hair loss treatment videos are available on YouTube, but potential patients are likely to access mostly new content created by well-subscribed channels. Videos with high viewer engagement contain information that can be useful in guiding treatment decisions, but tend to be biased because they are intended to promote dermatology and hair restoration clinics. Patients are using YouTube as a source of hair loss treatment information. Videos created by hair restoration experts contain reliable information, but their quality can be improved by providing links to other sources.