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YouTube videos for describing Deep Brain Stimulation: a comprehensive and quantitative review
Daniel Richardson1, Bran G Smith2, Stephanie W Y Fang1
1Neuromodulation and Movement Disorders Section, Neuroscience and Cell Biology Institute, City St George's, University of London, London, UK.
British Journal of Neurosurgery
|March 24, 2026
Summary
YouTube videos on Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) are engaging but often lack scientific accuracy. Patients should exercise caution, as these videos may provide misleading information about DBS procedures and outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Neurosurgery
- Medical Education
- Digital Health
Background:
- Patients increasingly use online videos for health information.
- Operative techniques for Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) vary across institutions, complicating patient education.
- Ensuring accurate patient understanding of DBS procedures is challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To comprehensively review YouTube videos describing Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS).
- To assess the educational quality and procedural accuracy of DBS videos on YouTube.
- To evaluate the audio-visual and production quality of DBS-related online content.
Main Methods:
- Searched YouTube for DBS-related terms.
- Included the top 25 de-duplicated videos per search.
- Assessed videos for procedural variations, educational quality (JAMA benchmark, DISCERN), and production value.
Main Results:
- Identified 91 DBS videos; 44% from academic institutions, 15% from hospitals.
- Parkinson's disease was the most common condition (65%).
- Significant variation in discussing procedural details (e.g., complications, surgery stages, awake vs. asleep) and low adherence to educational benchmarks (JAMA 12%, DISCERN median 46).
Conclusions:
- Most DBS YouTube videos are visually appealing with good production quality.
- However, they often lack scientific rigor and may present inaccurate or incomplete information.
- Patients and caregivers should critically evaluate DBS video content due to potential misinformation.
