TikTok and YouTube as sources of information on anal fissure: A comparative analysis

Anal fissure is a common colorectal disease impacting patients' life quality with high incidence. Social media platforms are becoming a kind of health information source nowadays. This study aims to evaluate and compare the quality of anal fissure-related videos on TikTok and YouTube.

One hundred videos were sourced from TikTok and YouTube, respectively and videos were screened further. The completeness of six types of content within the videos is assessed, including the definition of disease, symptoms, risk factors, evaluation, management and outcomes. Finally, the DISCERN instrument, Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool and Global Quality scale are used to assess video display quality and content. A correlation analysis is undertaken considering the video features, DISCERN, PEMAT and GQS scores.

Physicians and non-profit organizations contributed almost all video content among selected videos. A statistically significant correlation between DISCERN classification and duration, PEMAT understandability, PEMAT actionability and GQS scores is recorded. DISCERN total scores were significantly positively correlated with video duration, PEMAT understandability, PEMAT actionability and GQS scores. GQS scores were significantly positively correlated with duration, PEMAT understandability and PEMAT actionability scores. For content, the videos mainly described management and symptoms while containing limited information on the disease evaluation, and outcomes.

The sources of uploaders on YouTube are more diverse than TikTok, and the quality of videos is also relatively higher on YouTube. Even so, the video quality of the two platforms still needs to be further improved. Health information without integrity, reliability and practicability impacts patients' disease perception and health-seeking behavior, leading to serious consequences. Much effort must be taken to improve the quality of videos regarding anal fissures on the two platforms, which will facilitate the development of public health education on this issue.