Analyzing the contribution of sialoendoscopy videos on YouTube to surgical education and patient information

Abstract

Objectives: The study aimed to show the contribution of videos made on sialoendoscopy on YouTube to surgical education and patient information. Materials and Methods: A search on YouTube was performed for the term “sialendoscopy” without any changes to the standard search preferences between 15.01.2022 and 15.03.2022. Sixty-three videos about sialoendoscopy were found in the video scan. Sixteen videos were excluded from the study because they lacked audio. Ten videos were excluded for being repetitive. One video was excluded because it was in a non-English language. A total of 36 videos on the DISCERN score, JAMA score, and Global Quality Scale (GQS) were evaluated by two independent doctors. Two independent reviewers separately scored videos using a customized usability scoring scheme and evaluated video duration, views, days after upload, likes, and dislikes. Results: The total number of views of the videos was 624,893. The total duration of these videos was 374 min. The DISCERN, JAMA and GQS scores were found to be of poor quality. Conclusion: Doctors should be aware of this social media to raise awareness about sialolithiasis and to help patients distinguish misleading and useful information. YouTube is currently not a suitable resource for patients to learn about sialolithiasis. It is also not a suitable resource for doctors. Therefore, doctors should be more willing to provide peer-reviewed and more informative resources.