YouTube and Radiology: The Viability, Pitfalls, and Untapped Potential of the Premier Social Media Video Platform for Image-Based Education

Rationale and Objectives: There are several popular radiology channels on YouTube, reinforcing studies showing interest among medical students and trainees in video education and suggesting the potential use of YouTube for radiology education. Materials and Methods: The CTisus YouTube channel, dedicated to radiology education and based in the Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science at Johns Hopkins Hospital, has 25,000 subscribers. The benefits of this social media platform for radiology education were analyzed. The most popular videos (n = 484) from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2020 were categorized into case clips (short displays of case images); Facebook Live (15-20 minute discussions later posted to YouTube); lectures (weekly Power-Point lectures); and quizzes (10-question quiz discussions posted monthly). The number of days videos were available from July 2017 to June 2020 were counted and median views per 30 days were recorded. Lecture content was used to determine which of the following topics were more popular (received the most views) than others: Artificial intelligence, chest, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, musculoskeletal, neuro, physics, technique (such as protocols and contrast), technology, and vascular. Results: Facebook Live videos had the highest median views per 30 days (236.9), the highest median likes per 30 days (2.5), the highest median shares per 30 days (2.0), and the highest median subscribers gained per 30 days (0.7). Unlike video type, there was no obvious favorite lecture topic among viewers. Conclusion: Viewers were most engaged with longer videos, with interaction and watch time indicating greater interest than simple clicks/ views. YouTube is an easy-to-use and valuable platform for hosting video content. It reaches a global audience and provides what many radiology trainees and professionals are looking for: video instruction.

Automated summary

Radiology education on YouTube is gaining popularity, with channels like CTisus attracting a large number of viewers. Viewers are most interested in longer videos with high interactivity, and the audience tends to be globalized.