Clinical Research
YouTube as a Source of Medical Information About Spinal Cord Stimulation

https://doi.org/10.1111/ner.13303Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

Social media platforms may play an important role in the dissemination of medical information on interventional pain procedures. This cross-sectional study quantitatively assessed the reliability and quality of information from YouTube regarding spinal cord stimulation.

Materials and Methods

YouTube was queried on May 20, 2020 using keywords “spinal cord stimulator,” “spinal cord stimulation experience,” and “spinal cord stimulation risks.” The top 50 viewed videos from each search were analyzed. The primary outcome was video quality, which was analyzed using the modified DISCERN (mDISCERN) criteria.

Results

Seventy-nine of 103 (77%) videos were classified as useful. Fifteen of 103 (14%) videos were classified as misleading and contained nonfactual information on spinal cord stimulation. Hospitals, group practices, or physicians produced a greater proportion of useful videos compared to misleading videos (63.3% vs. 26.7%, p = 0.008). Nonmedical independent users produced a greater proportion of misleading videos compared to useful videos (73.3% vs. 16.4%, p < 0.001). Useful videos had significantly higher mDISCERN scores compared to misleading videos (2.6 vs. 1.9, p = 0.009). Nonmedical independent users produced a greater proportion of low-quality videos (mDISCERN score < 3) than high-quality videos (mDISCERN score ≥ 3; 50.8% vs. 2.4%, respectively, p < 0.001). Educational videos from professional pain medicine societies were not captured.

Conclusion

YouTube is an accessible platform for medical information on spinal cord stimulation, yet a significant amount of nonfactual information is present. As social media platforms continue to gain prominence in health care, future efforts to appraise the quality of medical content delivered to the public are warranted. In addition, reputable sources including professional pain medicine societies should consider collaborating with producers to disseminate high-quality video content that reaches a wider audience.

Section snippets

INTRODUCTION

Approximately 20% of adults in the United States have a diagnosis of chronic pain(1). Chronic pain can be debilitating and is commonly associated with impairments in physical and emotional functioning. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is a form of neuromodulation that provides electrical stimulation to the spinal cord which interferes with the transmission of pain signals to the brain(2). SCS has been associated with reductions in pain scores, improvements in physical and emotional functioning,

Study Protocol

An a priori protocol was followed.

Search Strategy

The YouTube platform (www.youtube.com) was queried using keywords “spinal cord stimulator,” “spinal cord stimulation experience,” and “spinal cord stimulation risks” from inception to May 20, 2020 using the default view count filter. The search was restricted to the first 50 most viewed videos for each search term based on the view count filter.

Video Selection Process

Inclusion criteria for videos included 1) primary content related to SCS and 2) English language. Exclusion criteria

RESULTS

A total of 117 videos were reviewed and 103 met inclusion criteria (Fig. 1). Seventy-nine (77%) videos were classified as useful, 15 (14%) were classified as misleading, and 9 (9%) were classified as neither.

DISCUSSION

The main finding of this study was that 77% of YouTube videos provide useful information about SCS. Videos produced by hospitals, group practices or physicians were more likely to be categorized as useful, but videos produced by nonmedical independent users were more likely to be misleading or to provide neither useful nor misleading content. These observations are consistent with other studies appraising medical information from YouTube, which have demonstrated that accurate, high-quality

CONCLUSION

With the continued growth of social media, sites such as YouTube are used to help disseminate medical information to patients from both reliable and unreliable sources. Although independent users may provide valuable patient experiences, there is a possibility that the information provided may contain nonfactual information. To help increase the number of reliable sources and to help educate patients on SCS, professional societies such as AAPM, ASRA, and NANS should consider creating and

Authorship Statements

Dr. Langford devised study plan, collected data, and wrote manuscript. Dr. Hooten aided in study design, interpretation of data, and revised manuscript critically for intellectual content. Mr. Shawn D’Souza aided in acquisition of data and drafting of paper. Dr. Moeschler aided in study design, interpretation of data, and revised manuscript critically for intellectual content. Dr. Ryan D’Souza devised study plan, interpreted and analyzed data, generated figures, and wrote manuscript. All

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