Abstract
Background
Short-video platforms have become important sources of health information, but the quality and reliability of venous thromboembolism (VTE)-related short videos remain unclear. This study evaluated VTE-related short videos on TikTok and Bilibili and conducted an exploratory examination of factors associated with video likes.
Methods
On February 27, 2025, the top 150 videos from each platform were retrieved according to the platforms’ default ranking algorithms. Video quality and reliability were assessed using the Global Quality Score (GQS), modified DISCERN (mDISCERN), and Medical Quality Video Evaluation Tool (MQ-VET). In an exploratory analysis, an eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) model was developed to examine factors associated with video likes.
Results
A total of 184 videos were included, comprising 81 from Bilibili and 103 from TikTok. Bilibili videos were longer, covered more VTE-related topics, and had higher median numbers of saves and shares, as well as higher GQS, mDISCERN, and MQ-VET scores than TikTok videos. TikTok videos received more likes and comments, while videos from professional uploaders on TikTok demonstrated higher quality and reliability. In the exploratory XGBoost analysis, follower count contributed the most to predicting video likes, followed by days since upload and the use of subtitles.
Conclusion
The overall quality and reliability of VTE-related short videos were suboptimal. Greater professional involvement and clearer reporting of evidence sources, references, and update information may enhance the educational value of online VTE-related short videos.