Quality of Spine Surgery Information on Social Media: A DISCERN Analysis of TikTok Videos

The use of social media applications to disseminate information has substantially risen in recent decades. Spine and back pain-related hashtags have garnered several billion views on TikTok. As such, these videos, which share experiences, offer entertainment, and educate users about spinal surgery, have become increasingly influential. Herein, we assess the quality of spine surgery content TikTok from providers and patients.

Fifty hashtags encompassing spine surgery ("#spinalfusion," "#scoliosissurgery," and "#spinaldecompression") were searched using TikTok's algorithm and included. Two independent reviewers rated the quality of each video via the DISCERN questionnaire. Video metadata (likes, shares, comments, views, length) were all collected; type of content creator (musculoskeletal, layperson) and content category (educational, patient experience, entertainment) were determined.

The overall DISCERN score was, on average, 24.4. #Spinalfusion videos demonstrated greater engagement, higher average likes (p = 0.02), and more comments (p < 0.001) compared to #spinaldecompression and #scoliosissurgery. #Spinaldecompression had the highest DISCERN score (p < 0.001), likely explained by the higher percentage of videos that were educational (p < 0.001) and created by musculoskeletal (MSK) professionals (p < 0.001). Compared to laypersons, MSK professionals had significantly higher quality videos (p < 0.001). Similarly, the educational category demonstrated higher quality videos (p < 0.001). Video interaction trended lower with MSK videos and educational videos had the lowest interaction of the content categories (likes: p = 0.023, comments: p = 0.005).

The quality of spine surgery videos on TikTok is low. As the influence of the new social media landscape governs how the average person consumes information, MSK providers should participate in disseminating high-quality content.