Evaluation of the Quality and Reliability of Gingival Recession-Related Content on YouTube and TikTok
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15517/efhxqh81Keywords:
Gingival recession; Discern; Global quality scale; Social media; Youtube; Tiktok.Abstract
This study evaluated the quality and reliability of information about gingival recession on YouTube and TikTok, and compared videos across platforms. Videos uploaded between December 2017 and December 2022 were searched and screened on January 13, 2023, yielding 1,882 videos of which 248 met the inclusion criteria (YouTube: 175, TikTok: 73). Videos were assessed for scientific credibility, information quality, and popularity using the Global Quality Scale (GQS), DISCERN, and JAMA benchmarks. Visual content richness, duration, likes, dislikes, views, sources, and video types were also recorded. Overall, the information quality was low to medium. YouTube videos had higher GQS (2.55) and DISCERN (1.88) scores than TikTok videos (1.92; 1.42) (p<0.05). Periodontologist videos showed significantly better visual content richness on YouTube (p<0.001), while no difference was observed on TikTok (p=0.111). TikTok videos had higher view rates (440.5 vs. 174.9; p<0.05), but YouTube videos were longer (p<0.001). Across both platforms, specialist-uploaded videos achieved significantly higher GQS and DISCERN scores than other sources (p<0.005). YouTube and TikTok provide accessible but overall low to medium-quality information on gingival recession, with frequent unreliability regarding causes and treatment. Patients should be encouraged to approach such content critically and prioritize information from verified professional sources.
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