Web based video educational resources for surgeons.

During the last years, video files showing different surgical procedures have become extremely available and popular on the internet. They are available on both free and unrestricted sites, as well as on dedicated sites which control the medical quality of the information. Honest presentation and a minimal video-editing to include information about the procedure are mandatory to achieve a product with a true educational value. The integration of the web-based video educational resources in the continuing medical information system seems to be limited and the true educational impact very difficult to assess. A review of the available literature dedicated on this subject shows that the main challenge is related to the human factor and not to the available technology.