096 The self-management of long-term conditions in the online era: an exploration of osteoarthritis-related videos on YouTube from 2017 in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Background: YouTube is the second most accessed website globally. Users are able to upload and view video content on almost any topic, and health related content is regularly searched and accessed by the public using YouTube. People with chronic diseases such as osteoarthritis (OA) are often encouraged to play an active role in managing their symptoms. It is known that people with chronic diseases are among the most frequent YouTube users seeking eHealth (electronic health) information online. To date, no research has explored the characteristics of YouTube videos relating to OA selfmanagement. Therefore, this study aimed to explore and describe the characteristics and content of the most accessed and viewed OA exercise videos posted onto YouTube in 2017 in the United Kingdom (UK). Methods: YouTube.com was searched using five pre-defined search terms - knee arthritis exercise; big toe arthritis exercise; hip arthritis exercise; ankle arthritis exercise and foot arthritis exercise. These search terms were developed in collaboration with patient and public involvement representatives where the terms hip/knee/foot/ankle/big toe arthritis pain were identified as being the ones most likely to be used by people with OA. An amalgamated search strategy was conducted to finalise the search terms to identify OA-specific content for this study. Videos were included if they contained arthritis content, or were relevant to the aims and scope of the study. Videos were excluded if they were irrelevant based on the title, did not contain content on arthritis, were not in English language or were inappropriate or offensive. Corresponding to the inclusion/exclusion criteria, the YouTube filter system was set to restricted mode on, content- UK and English language. A convenience sample of the top 50 videos accessed by view count was selected and independently analysed using a specifically-created coding scheme. Independent verification of the codes was conducted between two members of the review team. Results: The search strategy identified 98 video results; 61 videos met the inclusion criteria. The main theme identified was exercise and stretching (n=21) followed by traditional medicine and meditative approaches (n=10). The USA was the predominant source of OA exercise-related videos (n=25), while India was the main source for meditative approaches for managing arthritis (n=14). Only 8% (n=4) of videos originated from the UK, and 30% (n=15) of videos accessed were created by a health professional. There was reference to evidence-based practice and/or research in only 8% (n=4) of videos. Conclusion: Whilst a range of OA exercise related videos were retrieved, few were created by healthcare and educational organisations. Given the potential benefit of information dissemination via YouTube, our findings suggest that there is potential for these organisations to explore YouTube as a medium for the dissemination of quality-controlled, evidence-based, health information.