Abstract
BackgroundAn emergent source of information on health issues is the Internet. One such platform with 1 billion users is YouTube, the global video-sharing service.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to describe the content and characteristics of the most widely viewed YouTube videos related to diabetic retinopathy.MethodsVideos were sorted according to number of views using the key words “diabetic retinopathy.” For each video, general descriptive information was collected. This information included date and source of upload (news, professional, or consumer), length, and total number of views as of July 18, 2016. Content categories were largely informed by a National Eye Institute fact sheet. Each video was viewed to determine which, if any, of the given content categories were present.ResultsOf the 98 most widely viewed videos related to diabetic retinopathy, 42 were generated by consumers, 40 were generated by professionals, and 16 were generated from news-based sources. The largest number of views were generated from professionals (624,770/994,494, 63.82%). Compared with professional videos, consumer videos were viewed less frequently (W=622, P=.04). The main purpose of the majority of videos was to provide information (59/98, 60%), and most of the videos showed or mentioned retinopathy in general (75/98, 77%). Smaller numbers offered information about specific types of retinopathy, namely proliferative (26/98, 27%) and nonproliferative (17/98, 17%). Compared with consumer-generated videos, professional videos were 5.57 times more likely to mention that diabetic retinopathy can go unnoticed (95% CI 1.59-26.15). More than 80% (80/98) of the most widely viewed videos did not address the asymptomatic nature of the disease, only about one-third (33/98) mentioned prevention, and only 58 of the 98 videos (59%) mentioned screening.ConclusionFuture research is needed to identify aspects of YouTube videos that attract viewer attention and best practices for using this medium to increase diabetic retinopathy screening among people with diabetes.
Highlights
Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in adults of working age in the United States [1]
JMIR Diabetes 2016 | vol 1 | iss. 2 | e6 | p.1 non-Hispanic whites, the crude prevalence for both diabetic retinopathy and vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy is significantly higher for non-Hispanic blacks [2]
Of the 98 widely viewed videos related to diabetic retinopathy, 42 were generated by consumers, 40 were generated by professionals, and 16 were generated from news-based news sources
Summary
Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness in adults of working age in the United States [1]. Almost 1 in 3 individuals aged 40 years and older with diabetes in the United States (28.5%) is afflicted with diabetic retinopathy or vision-threatening diabetic retinopathy [2], and rates are expected to triple between 2005 and 2050 [3]. The visual impairment or blindness caused by diabetic retinopathy can be delayed or prevented through screening that results in early detection and, when appropriate, treatment with laser photocoagulation of retinal blood vessels. Rates of diabetic retinopathy screening have been shown to be higher among non-Hispanic whites than ethnic/racial minority groups [5]. An emergent source of information on health issues is the Internet One such platform with 1 billion users is YouTube, the global video-sharing service
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