Learning Surgical Fundamentals in the Digital Age, a YouTube Review

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Digital Health

Background:

• YouTube is a popular platform for medical students and trainees seeking surgical skills instruction.
• Concerns exist regarding the quality and reliability of YouTube's educational content due to a lack of formal peer review.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze YouTube suturing videos for content quality, instructor background, and viewer engagement.
• To identify trends and areas for improvement in online surgical education.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study of 303 English-language YouTube suturing instruction videos.
• Categorization of videos by instructor specialty and demonstrated suture patterns.
• Analysis of engagement metrics (view count, like count) to assess viewer preferences.

Main Results:

• Videos by healthcare professionals, especially surgeons, garnered the most engagement.
• Plastic and general surgeons produced top-viewed videos; oral-maxillofacial surgeons had highest median views; neurosurgeons had highest median likes.
• Popular videos focused on fundamental techniques; advanced techniques were underrepresented.

Conclusions:

• Healthcare professionals are crucial for producing reliable medical education content on YouTube.
• There is a need for more high-quality tutorials on advanced suturing techniques.
• Expanding content can improve open-access surgical education globally.