YouTube as a Source of Pediatric Tonsillectomy Information

Abstract

Objective: Tonsillectomy is a common surgery performed on pediatric patients. Patients and their caregivers may search the Internet for information related to this procedure, and YouTube is a popular Web site that they may consult. We investigated YouTube as an information source on pediatric tonsillectomy. Method: YouTube was searched on February 17, 2012, for videos containing relevant information about tonsillectomies in pediatric patients using the keywords pediatric tonsillectomy, tonsillectomy and tonsil surgery. Non-English videos were excluded. Two physician reviewers watched each video and assessed for content (useful, misleading, personal experience). The StatsDirect software will analyze measures. Results: The search for each keyword identified over 2555 videos (pediatric tonsillectomy = 91, tonsillectomy = about 1800, tonsil surgery = 664). The first 200 videos were screened for each keyword on the assumption that most users would not go beyond the first 10 pages. Therefore, 491 videos were screened for inclusion and exclusion criteria, and duplicates were removed. At the time of abstract submission, final data analysis was not yet available. Outcomes included content assessment and characteristics, and video total viewership, number of days since upload, total duration, viewer rating, and source of upload. Reviewer degree of agreement and relevant statistical analysis will be reported. Conclusion: YouTube has a substantial number of videos on pediatric tonsillectomy with a variety of content ranging from useful to misleading. Health care professionals must recognize the potential influence that these user-generated video Web sites may have on the attitudes of patients and their caregivers.