JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Social media platforms have transformed the landscape of health communication. Video content can optimally activate our cognitive systems, enhance learning, and deliver accessible information to a wide audience. Compared to traditional videos, social media videos offer broader reach and bi-directional interactivity, with evidence suggesting their positive impact on health knowledge and health-related behaviors. However, the objective impact of these videos on quantifiable health outcomes is under-researched. Evaluating such outcomes poses unique challenges in measuring exposure and outcomes within internet-based populations.

Objective:

We aimed to evaluate the impact of social media videos on objective quantifiable health outcomes, examine methodologies used to measure these effects, and describe the characteristics of video interventions and their delivery.

Methods:

In accordance with PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines, MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL and Google Scholar were searched. Eligible studies included original research evaluating long-form social media video interventions addressing any health-related condition, delivered via social media platforms, that reported objective quantitative health outcomes. The primary outcome was the effect of social media videos on quantitative health outcomes. Additional outcomes included participant characteristics, video features, delivery methods, and the use of theoretical frameworks. A narrative synthesis was conducted. An Albatross plot was used to visualize effect patterns. Risk of bias assessment was conducted using ROB2, ROBINS-I, or NIH Quality Assessment Tool, depending on the study design. One reviewer screened titles and abstracts. Two reviewers independently conducted full texts screening, data extraction and risk of bias assessment.

Results:

The original search yielded 31,263 records, of which thirteen studies met the eligibility criteria, involving 3,559 participants. Mental-health related conditions were the most commonly studied (seven studies). Other conditions included physical inactivity, osteoarthritis pain, coronary artery disease, inhaler usage in chronic airway usage, fear of corticosteroid treatment, and obesity. Most video interventions were delivered via YouTube (nine studies). Narrative synthesis showed that video interventions were associated with significant improvements in procedural-related anxiety, mood, physical activity levels, although most findings were limited to individual studies with variable methodological quality. Three studies that developed videos with user input and theoretical frameworks significantly impacted upon study-specific primary outcomes. Twelve out of thirteen studies showed high or unclear risk of bias. Due to heterogeneity in study designs, populations, video content, and outcome measures, a meta-analysis was not conducted.

Conclusions:

We demonstrated an overall positive impact of social media videos on objective health outcomes, notably in improving procedural-related anxiety. Nevertheless, there is the need to shift focus towards measuring physical health-related outcomes, and to develop innovative methodologies to measure the objective impact that can better simulate how individuals organically interact on social media platforms. Clinical Trial: PROSPERO (International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews) CRD42023474648; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42023474648