Quality and educational value of TikTok videos on rehabilitation exercises for triangular fibrocartilage complex injuries: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background

While TikTok's surge in health-related material creates valuable opportunities for patient education, the platform's absence of structured peer-review mechanisms raises concerns regarding the quality of available content. Increasingly, patients rely on social media for guidance on self-managing conditions such as Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex (TFCC) injuries; however, the quality of this information has not yet been rigorously evaluated.

Objective

The aim of this research was to systematically assess TikTok videos demonstrating rehabilitation exercises for TFCC injuries, specifically evaluating their quality, reliability, and educational value.

Methods

A cross-sectional study searched TikTok for “TFCC rehab”, “TFCC exercises”, and “TFCC training”. A final 123 videos were analyzed. Quality and reliability were assessed using DISCERN, Global Quality Scale (GQS), and JAMA criteria. Educational content was evaluated using an adapted TFCC Exercise Education Score (TFCCEES). Video characteristics, engagement metrics, and uploader types were recorded.

Results

Overall quality was low (median DISCERN 28.00; 88.6% “poor” or “very poor”). Most videos (64.23%) were from non-health professionals. Health professionals scored higher on JAMA criteria (P < 0.001), but no significant differences were found in DISCERN, GQS, or TFCCEES between groups. Engagement metrics showed negligible correlations with quality scores. Video duration moderately correlated with DISCERN (ρ = 0.45).

Conclusions

TFCC rehabilitation content on the Chinese version of TikTok is predominantly poor, regardless of uploader status. Popularity is not an indicator of quality, which may limit patients’ ability to identify reliable rehabilitation guidance. Healthcare professionals should direct patients to validated resources and create high-quality social media content.