Quality and reliability of aortic dissection-related health information on TikTok and Bilibili: a cross-sectional content analysis study

In recent years, TikTok and Bilibili, two popular Chinese social media platforms, have played an important role in health communication by providing a wide range of health-related content to diverse audiences. This study aimed to evaluate the content, quality, and reliability of aortic dissection (AD)-related videos on these two platforms.

Using the keyword "" (Chinese for aortic dissection), we initially retrieved the top 150 videos per platform under the default ranking. We recorded video duration, engagement metrics, and uploader identity. Video quality was assessed using the Global Quality Score (GQS) and the modified DISCERN (mDISCERN) scale. Between-group differences were compared using the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Spearman's rank correlation was applied to examine associations among variables.

A total of 228 videos were included. Content primarily focused on treatment (55.26%), with relatively sparse coverage of diagnosis (33.77%) and prognosis (14.91%). The median GQS was 2.50 [interquartile ranges (IQR), 2.00-3.00], and the mDISCERN score was 3.00 (IQR, 2.00-3.00). Videos on TikTok had higher GQS and mDISCERN scores (P<0.05). Compared with individual users and organizations, videos produced by specialist physicians achieved higher GQS and mDISCERN scores (P<0.05). Engagement metrics were not associated with GQS or mDISCERN (P>0.05).

The overall quality and reliability of AD-related videos on TikTok and Bilibili remain suboptimal, with insufficient attention to diagnosis and prognosis. Specialist-produced content shows higher reliability, whereas popularity does not reflect accuracy. Future efforts should strengthen platform oversight and review, encourage greater participation by specialist physicians in producing AD content, and optimize health information dissemination strategies.