YouTube™ videos as a source of information about thyroid ablation treatments for medical students

Aims: The aim of our study was to evaluate the content about thyroid ablation on YouTube™ in terms of scientific accuracy, usefulness, and quality of information for patients and healthcare professionals. Methods: Within the scope of the study, videos on YouTube™ were evaluated by medical students who did not have detailed information about thyroid ablation treatments. After searching YouTube™ with the relevant keywords, 43 videos were evaluated. After the videos were excluded according to our criteria, the remaining 30 videos were analyzed and scored on DISCERN and Global Quality Scale scores. According to DISCERN scores, low-quality videos with useless content below 50 points were grouped as Group 1, and videos with useful content above 50 points were grouped as Group 2. General information (number of views, length, how many days ago it was shared, number of likes, number of comments received) was noted, and statistical analysis was performed. Results: The median (interquartile range) number of views was 2012 (478-6877), the duration of the video in minutes was 2.47 (1.55-5.78), the number of days since the video was uploaded was 1234 (459-1611), the number of likes the video received was 19 (5-63), and the number of comments was 0 (0-4). The DISCERN scale was determined as 14 videos in group 1 and 16 videos in group 2. When general characteristics are compared with groups 1 and 2, a statistically significant difference was found between video length and groups 1 and 2. (P < 0.05) The duration of the video content was longer in group 2. No statistically significant difference was found between other findings and groups 1 and 2. Conclusion: When evaluated according to scales, it turns out that longer videos are of better quality. In today's technology, it is easy to access information but difficult to access accurate, reliable, and quality information. Therefore, physicians and academic institutions should provide high-quality, reliable videos of appropriate duration that contribute to informing patients and medical students. We believe that more videos uploaded by healthcare professionals and academic institutions will improve the quality of YouTube™ videos on thyroid ablation treatments.