Febrile seizure: What information can caregivers access through YouTube?

Introduction To analyze the content of Korean YouTube videos related to febrile seizures and examine the general characteristics, reliability, and quality of the videos. Method A search of YouTube was performed using three Korean keywords meaning “febrile seizure”, and a total of 1,641 videos were identified. Among them, 73 eligible videos were analyzed for their characteristics, quality, and reliability. The quality and reliability were rated using global quality (GQS) on a scale of 1–5 and the DISCERN instrument. Results The mean reliability and quality scores were 2.37±1.16 and 3.11±1.17 out of 5, respectively. Fifty-one of the 73 (69.8%) videos are related to febrile seizure management. Longer videos (13.94±20.06 vs 6.68±7.34) and videos with physicians (82.61% vs 32.00%) as the main speaker were higher quality. Discussion Both the quality and reliability of YouTube videos on febrile seizures were relatively low, and approximately only 30% of all videos were classified as high quality. Healthcare professionals should be aware that there is misinformation and low-quality information on social media and warn parents of this issue.