Quality and Reliability of YouTube Videos for Hand Surgery Training

Abstract

Background Hand injuries might present with exposed tendons, bones, and neurovascular structures, requiring flap reconstruction. Comprehending various flap options for hand injuries requires detailed knowledge, surgical skills, and considerable practice. Surgery residents commonly use web-based learning; one is YouTube for surgical education. We aim to evaluate the reliability and quality of the videos on YouTube for hand surgery training. Methods Video extraction from YouTube were done by keywords on 24 August 2021. JAMA scores and flap reconstruction of the hand-specific scoring system (FH-SS) were used to evaluate the selected videos. Results The mean JAMA score and FH-SS were 1.72 and 8.54, respectively. JAMA scores and FH-SS of the videos from Europe were significantly lower than from America and Asia (p = 0.0001 and p = 0.0063, respectively). The JAMA scores of physicians were significantly higher than that of medical sources (p < 0.0001). Conclusions The low JAMA score and the average FH-SS suggest that YouTube videos are unreliable and poorly qualified for hand surgery residents. The high JAMA score of the physician's videos emphasizes the reliability of YouTube videos depending on the sources. Surgery residents should be skeptical of the information of YouTube videos on surgical education. Level of Evidence: Not ratable