Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-cfpbc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T10:46:44.266Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

‘How to stop a nosebleed’: an assessment of the quality of epistaxis treatment advice on YouTube

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 June 2016

A T Haymes  and
V Harries
A T Haymes*
Affiliation:
Department of Otolaryngology, East Surrey Hospital, Redhill, UK
V Harries
Affiliation:
Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, UK
*
Address for correspondence: Mr Adam T Haymes, Department of Otolaryngology, East Surrey Hospital, Canada Avenue, Redhill RH1 5RH, UK E-mail: Haymesa@doctors.org.uk
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective:

Video hosting websites are increasingly being used to disseminate health education messages. This study aimed to assess the quality of advice contained within YouTube videos on the conservative management of epistaxis.

Method:

YouTube.com was searched using the phrase ‘how to stop a nosebleed’. The first 50 videos were screened. Objective advice scores and subjective production quality scores were attributed by independent raters.

Results:

Forty-five videos were analysed. The mean advice score was 2.0 out of 8 and the mean production quality score was 1.6 out of 3. There were no correlations between a video's advice score and its search results rank (ρ = −0.28, p = 0.068), its view count (ρ = 0.20, p = 0.19) or its number of ‘likes’ (ρ = 0.21, p = 0.18).

Conclusion:

The quality of information on conservative epistaxis management within YouTube videos is extremely variable. A high search rank is no indication of video quality. Many videos proffer inappropriate and dangerous ‘alternative’ advice. We do not recommend YouTube as a source for patient information.

Keywords

EpistaxisInternetPatient Education
Type
Main Articles
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 130 , Issue 8 , August 2016 , pp. 749 - 754
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Rutten, LJ, Squiers, L, Hesse, B. Cancer-related information seeking: hints from the 2003 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS). J Health Commun 2006;11:147–56Google Scholar
2 Atkinson, NL, Saperstein, SL, Pleis, J. Using the internet for health-related activities: findings from a national probability sample. J Med Internet Res 2009;11:e4 Google Scholar
3 Pew Research Center. The internet as an information and economic appliance in the lives of teens and young adults. In: http://www.pewinternet.org/2010/02/03/part-4-the-internet-as-an-information-and-economic-appliance-in-the-lives-of-teens-and-young-adults/ [6 July 2015]Google Scholar
4 Alexa. The top 500 sites on the web. In: http://www.alexa.com/topsites [6 July 2015]Google Scholar
5 YouTube. Holy Nyans! 60 hours per minute and 4 billion views a day on YouTube. In: http://youtube-global.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/holy-nyans-60-hours-per-minute-and-4.html [6 July 2015]Google Scholar
6 Rittberg, R, Dissanayake, T, Katz, SJ. A qualitative analysis of methotrexate self-injection education videos on YouTube. Clin Rheumatol 2016;35:1329–33CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7 Garg, N, Venkatraman, A, Pandey, A, Kumar, N. YouTube as a source of information on dialysis: a content analysis. Nephrology (Carlton) 2015;20:315–20Google Scholar
8 Basch, CH, Hillyer, GC, Reeves, R, Basch, CE. Analysis of YouTube videos related to bowel preparation for colonoscopy. World J Gastrointest Endosc 2014;6:432–5Google Scholar
9 American Public Health Association. Criteria for assessing the quality of health information on the internet. Am J Public Health 2001;91:513–14CrossRefGoogle Scholar
10 Coiera, E, Aarts, J, Kulikowski, C. The dangerous decade. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2012;19:2–5 Google Scholar
11 Lau, AY, Gabarron, E, Fernandez-Luque, L, Armayones, M. Social media in health–what are the safety concerns for health consumers? HIM J 2012;41:30–5Google Scholar
12 Madathil, KC, Rivera-Rodriguez, AJ, Greenstein, JS, Gramopadhye, AK. Healthcare information on YouTube: a systematic review. Health Informatics J 2015;21:173–94Google Scholar
13 Biggs, TC, Bird, JH, Harries, PG, Salib, RJ. YouTube as a source of information on rhinosinusitis: the good, the bad and the ugly. J Laryngol Otol 2013;127:749–54CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14 Strychowsky, JE, Nayan, S, Farrokhyar, F, MacLean, J. YouTube: a good source of information on pediatric tonsillectomy? Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 2013;77:972–5Google Scholar
15 Kerber, KA, Burke, JF, Skolarus, LE, Callaghan, BC, Fife, TD, Baloh, RW et al. A prescription for the Epley maneuver: www.youtube.com? Neurology 2012;79:376–80CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
16 Sorensen, JA, Pusz, MD, Brietzke, SE. YouTube as an information source for pediatric adenotonsillectomy and ear tube surgery. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 2014;78:65–70 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
17 Petruson, B, Rudin, R. The frequency of epistaxis in a male population sample. Rhinology 1975;13:129–33Google Scholar
18 Villwock, JA, Jones, K. Recent trends in epistaxis management in the United States: 2008–2010. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2013;139:1279–84CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
19 Pashen, D, Stevens, M. Management of epistaxis in general practice. Aust Fam Physician 2002;31:717–21Google ScholarPubMed
20 Pope, LE, Hobbs, CG. Epistaxis: an update on current management. Postgrad Med J 2005;81:309–14CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21 NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries. Epistaxis (nosebleeds). In: http://cks.nice.org.uk/epistaxis-nosebleeds#!scenario [21 March 2015]Google Scholar
22 Patient UK. Nosebleed (Epistaxis). In: http://patient.info/health/nosebleed-epistaxis-leaflet [21 March 2015]Google Scholar
23 Eysenbach, G, Köhler, C. How do consumers search for and appraise health information on the world wide web? Qualitative study using focus groups, usability tests, and in-depth interviews. BMJ 2002;324:573–7Google Scholar
24 Gabarron, E, Fernandez-Luque, L, Armayones, M, Lau, AY. Identifying measures used for assessing quality of YouTube videos with patient health information: a review of current literature. Interact J Med Res 2013;2:e6 Google Scholar