The Assessment of TikTok as a Source of Quality Health Information on Varicoceles

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the quality of varicocele information on TikTok, a popular video platform that ado-lescent patients are now turning to as a source of medical information before visiting a doctor.METHODS Using the key word "varicocele," we retrieved the top 225 videos listed on TikTok in May 2022. We extracted general video and engagement data. Video information was coded and analyzed for the completeness of different types of content (definition, symptoms, evaluation, management, and outcomes). The quality of consumer health information was rated using the DISCERN instrument.RESULTS Thirty-six videos met inclusion criteria; 17 were created by general users, 16 by healthcare profes-sionals or systems (2 by urologists), and 3 by scientific communities. Healthcare professionals had more views than non-healthcare (P = .05). The quality of health information using the DISCERN instrument was "poor" from health care professional videos and "very poor" from non-health care professionals. However, the quality of information provided by healthcare professionals was statis-tically better than that of non-healthcare (P< .05). Video content mainly focused on symptoms: 50% of videos from healthcare providers had some or extensive content and 41% of non -health-care had some content. 23% of videos had misinformation.CONCLUSION The overall quality of information for varicoceles on TikTok is not acceptable and does not meet patient needs. It is imperative that urologists create robust, accurate content, and partner with these platforms to connect users with higher quality information. TikTok users should also be mindful that information may not be medically accurate. UROLOGY 175: 170-174, 2023.& COPY; 2022 Elsevier Inc.