Are YouTube Videos in Turkish Useful as an Information Source for Dental Treatment During the COVID-19 Pandemic?

Abstract

Purpose: Since the start of the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic, patients with dental conditions find it difficult to consult their physicians and to preserve the continuity of dental treatment. All routine appointments were suspended and postponed indefinitely so that infection control procedures could be administered. This study aimed to assess the value of Turkish videos for patients seeking information on dental treatments during the COVID-19 outbreak. Methods: Videos on YouTube were screened using the following keywords: ‘Coronavirus, diş tedavileri’, ‘COVID-19, diş tedavileri’ and ‘SARS-Cov-2, diş tedavileri’. The search results were limited to the first 100 videos. Videos were analysed independently by two examiners and re-evaluated by an independent examiner. The scope was limited to videos in Turkish. Results: The keyword search resulted in an initial list of 919 videos, from which the first 100 videos were viewed. The final analysis included 39 videos that qualified the inclusion criteria. Of the 39 videos, only one had excellent quality, while 13 (33.3%) had poor quality. Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that YouTube videos in the Turkish language were limited sources for patients seeking reliable information on dental treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further studies from other countries are needed to evaluate the available YouTube videos during and after the period of the COVID-19 outbreak.