Analysis of patient perceptions of Mohs surgery on social media platforms

Exploring arteriovenous malformations patient sentiments through 1401 social media posts

INTRODUCTION

Social media has allowed patients with rare diseases to connect and discuss their experiences with others online. This study analyzed various social media platforms to better understand the patient's perception of arteriovenous malformation.

METHODS

Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok were searched to find posts about patients' experiences with arteriovenous malformations (AVM). Posts unrelated to the patient's experience were excluded. Posts were coded for the relevant themes related to their experience with the disease, as well as engagement, and gender.

RESULTS

The most common theme was raising awareness about the condition (87.0%). Recounting symptoms (50.2%), spreading positivity (17.5%), and survival (8.3%) were other common themes. Other prevalent themes were pain (5.2%) and fear of a rare disease (3.5%). Approximately half of AVM-related Instagram (47.93%) and TikTok (52.94%) posts raised awareness about the condition. Most Instagram (67.75%) and TikTok (89.71%) posts focused on recovery and rehabilitation. Most TikTok posts discussed "survival" or "death" (57.35%), while the majority focused on spreading positivity (79.41%). Most posts were made by women (69.6%). Females were more likely than males to post about the scientific explanation of AVMs (p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

Social media allows patients across the country and the globe to discuss their experiences with uncommon diseases and connect with others. It also allows AVM patients to share their experiences with other patients and the public.

The New Media Landscape and Its Effects on Skin Cancer Diagnostics, Prognostics, and Prevention: Scoping Review

BACKGROUND

The wide availability of web-based sources, including social media (SM), has supported rapid, widespread dissemination of health information. This dissemination can be an asset during public health emergencies; however, it can also present challenges when the information is inaccurate or ill-informed. Of interest, many SM sources discuss cancer, specifically cutaneous melanoma and keratinocyte cancers (basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma).

OBJECTIVE

Through a comprehensive and scoping review of the literature, this study aims to gain an actionable perspective of the state of SM information regarding skin cancer diagnostics, prognostics, and prevention.

METHODS

We performed a scoping literature review to establish the relationship between SM and skin cancer. A literature search was conducted across MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Scopus from January 2000 to June 2023. The included studies discussed SM and its relationship to and effect on skin cancer.

RESULTS

Through the search, 1009 abstracts were initially identified, 188 received full-text review, and 112 met inclusion criteria. The included studies were divided into 7 groupings based on a publication's primary objective: misinformation (n=40, 36%), prevention campaign (n=19, 17%), engagement (n=16, 14%), research (n=12, 11%), education (n=11, 10%), demographics (n=10, 9%), and patient support (n=4, 3%), which were the most common identified themes.

CONCLUSIONS

Through this review, we gained a better understanding of the SM environment addressing skin cancer information, and we gained insight into the best practices by which SM could be used to positively influence the health care information ecosystem.

Patient experiences and perceptions of kidney stone surgery: what lessons can be learned from TikTok?

Introduction

The aim of this study was to perform an evaluation of patient experiences and perceptions regarding kidney stone surgery on the social media platform TikTok. An increasing number of the public use social media (SoMe) as a platform to share their views regarding their experiences related to surgical treatment.

Methods

Using the hashtag #kidneystonesurgery, the 100 most recent video posts as of 01.01.2024 on TikTok were included. As well as demographic data such as gender and location, thematic content was also collected. To achieve this, a previously published framework was used and adapted for application in the setting of kidney stone surgery. This was piloted on 20 sample videos to assess its feasibility before revision and establishment of the final framework. This included the following key areas: Pain, Complications, Anxiety, Recovery, Return to work, Finances, Treatment delays, Diet and Prevention and stent complaints.

Results

The majority of posts (95%) were from North America, 80% by females and the mean number of video views was 92,826 (range: 261-2,000,000). 76% of the videos discussed ureteroscopy (URS). 49% were filmed at the hospital, which was named in 9% of the videos. Top three topics discussed were: Recovery (65%), pain (62%) and stents (55%). This was followed by anxiety (39%) and complications (24%). 12% of these videos uploaded by lay people included basic medical information that was wholly incorrect. More than half of the posts (51%) were negative in tone. Treatment delays (5%) and a lack of sufficient preoperative information (4%) were also raised, that appeared to contribute to the negative reports. However, the main cause for negative tone owed to the 80% of the patients (n = 44) who discussed stents that focused their video on the pain suffered from the post operative stent.

Conclusion

There is a high level of usership and engagement on TikTok on the subject of kidney stone surgery. The proportion of negative videos is high and much of this is related to the bothersome stent symptoms and complications. This could easily lead to misperceptions among potential patients about the true burden of such adverse events.

Cerebral Cavernous Malformations Patient Perception Analysis via Social Media

BACKGROUND

 The rise of social media has allowed for individuals and patients to connect with each other and influence patient behavior. This study aimed to improve our understanding of the patients' experience with cerebral cavernous malformations (CCM) via social media.

METHODS

 Instagram and Twitter were searched using terms of ("cavernoma," "cavernous malformations," "cavernous angioma," or "cav mal"). Public Instagram posts tagged with "#cavernoma" and "@cavernoma" identified 327 posts that directly included a patient's own experience. Twitter posts that included "#cavernoma" and "@cavernoma" were searched, yielding 75 after eliminating those that did not pertain to the patient's own experience. The posts and tweets were coded for relevant themes related to their experience with the disease.

RESULTS

 Overall, more patients are using Instagram (n  =  327) over Twitter (n  =  84) to share their personal experience with CCM with a trend for male patients to use Twitter more compared to females with a female predominance in Instagram. A total of 277 of 327 (84.7%) Instagram posts and 67 of 84 (89.3%) Twitter posts were made after the patient's surgery. The most common theme on Instagram was focused on the postoperative rehabilitation process and mobility support (52.0 and 24.5%, respectively). Other common themes present on Twitter and Instagram were recounting symptoms and complications and life satisfaction (26.0 and 24.2%, respectively). Cavernoma patients prior to surgery were more likely to discuss on Instagram their symptoms (p  =  0.001), fear of bleeding (p  <  0.001), and mental health (p  =  0.014). Postoperatively, cavernoma patients were more likely to discuss disability than they were preoperatively (p  =  0.001).

CONCLUSION

 Social media platforms offer a communication tool for patients with CCM patients to share their experience with other patients and the general public and portrays their personal experience with CCM. These platforms allow for physicians to better understand the patient experience following cavernoma surgery.

Patient and Caregiver Perception of Adenoidectomies: A Non-Real-World Social Media Analysis

Objective

To survey the social media outlets Twitter and Instagram for public posts related to adenoidectomy surgery. This study aims to investigate the attitudes and perceptions of patients and caregivers on social media, through thematic content-analysis of social media posts regarding adenoidectomy.

Study Design

Non-real world qualitative study.

Setting

Twitter and Instagram social media platforms.

Methods

Public posts uploaded between February, 2021 and February, 2023 using the hashtags "#adenoidectomy," and "#adenoidectomyrecovery" were searched. Posts were excluded if they were unrelated to adenoidectomy or were in a non-English language. Relevant posts were stratified demographically as patient or caregiver and pre- or postoperative, and categorized into relevant themes for analysis. Outcomes were measured as the total number of posts.

Results

A total of 394 relevant posts were analyzed. A significance threshold of P < 0.05 was used. Patients posted significantly more posts regarding procedure pain (P = 0.002) and concern for appearance (P = 0.048) compared to caregivers. Caregivers posted significantly (P < 0.001) more posts regarding condition awareness and were significantly (P < 0.001) more likely to spread positivity in their posts compared to patients themselves. Posts made by female caregivers were more likely to reference fear, while those made by male caregivers were more likely to provide education (P = 0.002).

Conclusion

Patients may worry about appearance and mental health while caregivers are more likely to spread information and positivity. Male and female caregivers may also use social media differently. A better understanding of patient and caregiver concerns may optimize physician interaction and involvement.

What are IBD Patients Talking About on Twitter? Using Natural Language Understanding to Investigate Patients' Tweets

This research aims to investigate what patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are talking about on Twitter and learn from the experimental knowledge they share online. The study presents a framework for analyzing patients' tweets and comparing their content to tweets of the general population. We started by constructing two datasets of tweets-a dataset of patients' tweets and a control dataset for comparison. Then, we thematically classified the tweets and obtained a subset of tweets related to health and nutrition. We used a Dirichlet regression to compare the thematic segmentations of the two groups. We continued by extracting keywords from the filtered tweets and applying entity sentiment analysis to determine the patients' sentiments towards the extracted keywords. Finally, we detected emotions within the tweets and used a Wilcoxon test to compare the emotions conveyed in each group. We found statistically significant differences between the patients' thematic segmentations and those of the control group and observed significant differences in the emotions each group expressed while talking about health. Not only do patients talk more about health in comparison to the general Twitter population, but they also address the subject with negative sentiments and express more negative emotions. The personal information IBD patients share on Twitter can be used to derive complementary knowledge about the disease and provide an additional foundation to existing medical research on IBD. The four stages of the study are also feasible to extend to other chronic conditions.

Benefits, drawbacks, and challenges of social media use in dermatology: A systematic review

The presence of dermatological information on social media has grown exponentially over the last two decades. Consequently, the recent literature on this topic is abundant. Many authors have highlighted that social media constitutes a unique opportunity for patient education. Additionally, numerous other benefits of these platforms have been reported. However, other authors have focused on the potential risks that these networks involve. The main concerns are patient confidentiality, legal considerations and ethical issues. Therefore, we stand at a crossroads where the many advantages of social media use in dermatology seem to be underestimated due to the presence of potential drawbacks. At this point, we propose that a systematic review of the positive and negative aspects of using social media in dermatology is necessary. We carried out a comprehensive systematic review dating from inception to July 2021. Finally, 161 articles were included. Fifteen benefits, 11 drawbacks and 10 challenges of social media use in dermatology were identified and discussed. Suggested strategies to address the identified drawbacks were provided. Overall, while there are risks to using social media, they are outnumbered by their benefits. Therefore, dermatologists should embrace this opportunity to educate patients and aim to create rigorous and engaging content.

The use of social media platforms to discuss and educate the public on allergic contact dermatitis

BACKGROUND

Social media platforms are increasingly used by patients to research and discuss medical problems.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to identify by whom, how frequently, and how allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is discussed on social media sites.

METHODS

Search terms allergic contact dermatitis and contact dermatitis were queried across Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, Facebook, YouTube, and Google search metrics. The frequency, content, and creators of content were assessed.

RESULTS

ACD content was identified on all platforms and was made by patients, physicians, professional organizations, and companies. When comparing the volume of posts, more content was on Instagram than Twitter, particularly among patients. Patients support groups were identified on Facebook but not on Reddit. A formal analysis of YouTube videos found that the medical information presented in these videos was often of poor quality.

CONCLUSIONS

Patch testing physicians should be aware information on ACD exist across social media sites. While some content is generated by physicians, patients and industry groups also post and share material. Patch testing physicians should be aware that there is an opportunity to share ACD information, but they should also be aware our patients are posting and creating online support communities independent of us. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The virtual infertility community: a qualitative analysis of patient experiences shared on Instagram

PURPOSE

To characterize the experiences of patients undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) through a qualitative analysis of content shared on Instagram.

METHODS

We analyzed Instagram posts from five randomly selected days in February 2020. The hashtag, #ivfcommunity, was selected to identify public posts authored by Instagram's IVF community members from multiple treatment centers. Text, photos, hashtags, and emojis were collected from 452 included posts and entered into a study-specific database. Using thematic coding, a four-member team initially coded the first day in February. Common themes were agreed upon by all team members, and a preliminary codebook was created for further analysis. The remaining posts were coded by two-member teams who reached a consensus on the multiple themes assigned to each individual post.

RESULTS

Analysis of posts led to the identification of five major themes: documentation of the medical and physical experience of IVF (76.1%), the emotional spectrum (43.1%), social support (49.2%), coping mechanisms (29.9%), and education (receipt, provision) (11.1%).

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that women undergoing IVF often utilize social media to document daily experiences, offer and recognize sources of community support, and provide and receive education regarding their treatments. Given the increased prevalence of mental health conditions, medical providers should explore challenges discussed on online platforms and consider harnessing the supportive nature of online communities to supplement care for IVF patients.

"Fake news" in dermatology. Results from an observational, cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Social networks have become a means for disseminating information on health-related matters.

OBJECTIVE

Describe the characteristics and analyze the accuracy of the dermatology content that is most often shared on the most popular social networks.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The content most often shared on social networks (Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Reddit) between March 2019 and March 2020 was analyzed using the keywords: acne, alopecia/hair loss, psoriasis, eczema, melanoma, skin cancer, rash, and rosacea. The total number of interactions, skin disease, topic, and origin was collected from each of the records. The content was analyzed and was categorized as precise, confusing, or imprecise based on the scientific evidence available.

RESULTS

A total of 385 websites were included. About 44.7% of the shared content was rated as imprecise, 20% as confusing, and 35.3% as precise. The records classified as imprecise obtained a higher mean number of interactions (P < 0.05). No differences were found in terms of the level of certainty and the dermatosis studied, whereas they did exist in relation to their topic and origin (P < 0.001). Of the contents classified as imprecise, the most frequent topic and origin were "alternative medicines" and "individual opinions, articles not affiliated with health institutions, nor peer reviewed," respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The majority of the contents often shared on social networks are below acceptable quality standards. Strategies are needed to discredit imprecise information and promote the dissemination of evidence-based dermatology information.