Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice, cilt.32, sa.2, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Objectives: Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), which provides treatment of chronic wounds and damaged tissues by inhaling pure oxygen under high pressure, serves both in centres and as portable oxygen chambers. During HBOT treatment, it is possible for the patient to experience an accident caused by oxygen and pressure. In this context, especially the use of portable oxygen chambers is quite risky and requires a high level of technical knowledge. Today, YouTube is a platform that contains a lot of useful or useless information and is used by millions of people at the same time. The information contained in these contents uploaded on YouTube without any control or filtering can reach anyone with internet access. In this context, the aim of this study is to evaluate the characteristics, quality and reliability of the content uploaded on YouTube for portable oxygen chambers. Methods: The study was cross-sectional and searches were performed on the YouTube platform with five keywords. The analysed videos were evaluated by two experienced researchers in terms of the accuracy of the information contained, the parameters of the video, upload date, duration, number of views, likes and comments. Video quality was assessed using the Global Quality Scale (GQS), reliability was assessed using the modified DISCERN (Mdıscern), information accuracy, information flow, quality and precision of the videos were assessed using the Video Information and Quality Index (VIQI) Scale, and transparency was assessed using the Journal of American Medical Association Benchmark criteria (JAMA). Results: In this study, 45 portable Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) videos on the YouTube platform were evaluated for quality and reliability. Only 31% of the videos were classified as high quality, while the majority of the remaining videos were of medium (40%) and low (29%) quality. The mean scores of M-Discern and VIQI were 3.1 and 3.3, respectively, and 58% of the content had low reliability according to JAMA criteria. The quality and credibility levels of physician- and academic-generated videos were statistically significantly higher (p < 0.05) compared to content produced by independent users and marketers. A weak but significant relationship was found between GQS and number of views (r = 0.29, p = 0.04). Conclusion: This study revealed that portable HBOT content on YouTube is largely inadequate in terms of information quality and reliability. It is of great importance that content on digital platforms on health-related topics is prepared by professionals and supported by scientific references.