ArticleNeurospine2023
Quality of Spine Surgery Information on Social Media: A DISCERN Analysis of TikTok Videos.
Article in Neurospine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The Implementation of Social Media in Neurosurgery: A Systematic Review of the Literature.Acta neurochirurgica · 2025Pooled it
- Evaluating the quality and reliability of rotator cuff injury related videos on Bilibili and TikTok: A cross-sectional analysis.Medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- Evaluating the Educational Quality and Accuracy of Carpal Tunnel- and Cubital Tunnel-Related Videos on TikTok.Hand (New York, N.Y.) · 2026Article
- Evaluating the Quality of Health Information: Comparison of Human and Artificial Intelligence.Neurogastroenterology and motility · 2026Article
- Digital awareness in spinal cord injury: content and sentiment analysis of the 100 most viewed YouTube videos.Spinal cord · 2026Observational
- Exploring the Quality of TikTok-Based Diabetes Self-Management Education in English and Spanish: A Digital Health Study.The science of diabetes self-management and care · 2026Article
- Quality and reliability of knee osteoarthritis-related information on short video platforms in China: a multi-method cross-sectional study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- ChatGPT-5.4 in health education: inter-generation stability and persistent readability challenges.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Swipe, watch, learn? An analysis of TikTok as a source of patient education on spondylolisthesis.Brain & spine · 2026Article
- Decoupled quality and readability in skin cancer education from large language models.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Synergizing Digital and Print: Leveraging Spine Surgeons' Social Media to Transform Publishing and Society Interaction.International journal of spine surgery · 2025Article
- Perceptions of endometriosis surgery on TikTok: quality and implications for patient counselling.Facts, views & vision in ObGyn · 2025Article
- Quality Assessment of Health Information on Social Media During a Public Health Crisis: Infodemiology Study.JMIR infodemiology · 2025Article
- Quality, Reliability and Accuracy of Hyperthyroidism-Related Content on Social Media Platform TikTok.Endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism · 2025Article
- Social media best practices for the spine care professional.North American Spine Society journal · 2025Article
- Fake News? Quantifying the Prevalence of Misinformation Related to Scoliosis on the TikTok Social Media Platform.Journal of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America · 2025Article
- Article
- Evaluating the Content and Quality of Videos Related to Hypertrophic Scarring on TikTok in China: Cross-Sectional Study.JMIR infodemiology · 2025Article
- Surgical Decision-Making Experience of Patients with Lumbar Disc Herniation: A Qualitative Study.Patient preference and adherence · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe 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.
methodsFifty 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.
resultsThe 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).
conclusionThe 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.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.