Glover Banahene, Datcu Anne-Marie, Meyer Macy, Lachmann Emily, McIntosh Amy, Johnson Megan, Brooks Jaysson T
UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Bryan, TX, USA.
J Pediatr Soc North Am. 2025 May 27;12:100207. doi: 10.1016/j.jposna.2025.100207. eCollection 2025 Aug.
The lack of presence by spine deformity surgeons on TikTok, in addition to the platform's unregulated nature, raises concerns about the potential spread of misinformation regarding pediatric orthopaedic conditions. The purpose of this study is to assess the prevalence of scoliosis misinformation on TikTok with a specific focus on what types of scoliosis content contain the most misinformation and which content creators produce the most videos containing this misinformation.
A comprehensive search was conducted on TikTok using the following hashtags: #scoliosis, #scoliosischiropractor, #scoliosisbrace, #scoliosissurgery. A total of 239 videos were reviewed over a 7-day period by three reviewers. Videos were categorized based on tone, content type, and healthcare provider involvement. Three pediatric spine surgeons reviewed flagged videos for misinformation related to scoliosis. Quality assessment was performed using the Global Quality Scale (GQS) and the DISCERN scoring system, with a score of 5 denoting the highest quality.
TikTok videos related to scoliosis received on average 2.4 million views. Most TikTok scoliosis videos, 72.8% (n = 174), were created by patients sharing their experiences. When measuring video content quality, videos by physicians scored significantly higher with mean DISCERN and GQS scores of 3.3 ± 0.5 and 3.7 ± 0.4, respectively, compared to chiropractors with mean DISCERN and GQS scores of 2.3 ± 0.6 and 2.5 ± 0.5 ( < .0001). Forty-four percent (n = 24) of videos offering scoliosis advice were found to contain misinformation. The majority of these misinformation videos were produced by chiropractors (46%, n = 11) compared to physicians (12.5%, n = 3), although this was not statistically significant. Videos containing misinformation related to scoliosis garnered 2.2 ± 5.2 million views versus videos that did not contain misinformation, which received 1.6 ± 5.1 million views ( = .7).
Chiropractors are the most frequent healthcare providers offering scoliosis advice on TikTok. The quality of information presented by chiropractors was found to be significantly lower than that of physicians. Spine deformity surgeons should be aware of TikTok's market dominance and provide high-quality information to counter the misinformation currently present on the platform related to scoliosis.
(1)The limited presence of spine deformity surgeons on TikTok contributes to the spread of scoliosis misinformation.(2)Patient-generated TikTok videos dominate scoliosis content but frequently lack evidence-based guidance.(3)Chiropractors are the most common healthcare providers posting scoliosis advice, although their content often scores lower in reliability.(4)Physician-led videos generally demonstrate higher DISCERN and GQS scores, emphasizing the value of expert-produced content.(5)Greater involvement of spine deformity surgeons on TikTok could reduce misinformation and improve patient education.
Level IV study.
脊柱畸形外科医生在TikTok上的缺席，加上该平台缺乏监管，引发了人们对小儿骨科疾病错误信息可能传播的担忧。本研究的目的是评估TikTok上脊柱侧弯错误信息的流行程度，特别关注哪种类型的脊柱侧弯内容包含最多错误信息，以及哪些内容创作者制作了包含此类错误信息的视频最多。
在TikTok上使用以下主题标签进行了全面搜索：#脊柱侧弯、#脊柱侧弯整脊师、#脊柱侧弯支具、#脊柱侧弯手术。三名评审员在7天内共审查了239个视频。视频根据语气、内容类型和医疗保健提供者的参与情况进行分类。三名小儿脊柱外科医生对标记的视频进行了脊柱侧弯相关错误信息的审查。使用全球质量量表（GQS）和DISCERN评分系统进行质量评估，5分表示最高质量。
与脊柱侧弯相关的TikTok视频平均获得240万次观看。大多数TikTok脊柱侧弯视频（72.8%，n = 174）是由患者分享他们的经历创建的。在衡量视频内容质量时，医生制作的视频得分显著更高，DISCERN平均得分和GQS得分分别为3.3±0.5和3.7±0.4，而整脊师制作的视频DISCERN平均得分和GQS得分分别为2.3±0.6和2.5±0.5（P <.0001）。发现提供脊柱侧弯建议的视频中有44%（n = 24）包含错误信息。这些错误信息视频大多由整脊师制作（46%，n = 11），而医生制作的占12.5%（n = 3），尽管这在统计学上不显著。包含脊柱侧弯相关错误信息的视频获得了220±520万次观看，而不包含错误信息的视频获得了160±510万次观看（P =.7）。
整脊师是在TikTok上提供脊柱侧弯建议的最频繁的医疗保健提供者。发现整脊师提供的信息质量明显低于医生。脊柱畸形外科医生应意识到TikTok的市场主导地位，并提供高质量信息以对抗该平台目前存在的与脊柱侧弯相关的错误信息。
（1）脊柱畸形外科医生在TikTok上的存在有限，这导致了脊柱侧弯错误信息的传播。（2）患者生成的TikTok视频主导了脊柱侧弯内容，但经常缺乏循证指导。（3）整脊师是发布脊柱侧弯建议的最常见医疗保健提供者，尽管他们的内容在可靠性方面往往得分较低。（4）医生主导的视频通常显示出更高的DISCERN和GQS得分，强调了专家制作内容的价值。（5）脊柱畸形外科医生在TikTok上更多的参与可以减少错误信息并改善患者教育。
四级研究。
