Radiology on Reddit: A Content Analysis and Opportunity for Radiologist Engagement and Education

The growing role of social media for research and education in radiology

While the adoption of social media platforms has become commonplace for personal life use, its practice has tremendously grown for professional usage in medicine, and particularly in the field of radiology. The use of alternative metrics, or altmetrics, scores have developed in an effort to quantify the impact of research beyond traditional metrics, such as citation rate and journal impact factor, particularly to recognize the impact of social media on dissemination and promotion of research. Social media usage in the realm of radiology has expectedly been adopted for the purposes of medical education, research, networking, and advocacy. However, some platforms have been used as a medium to discuss and share the day-to-day nature in the field of radiology, burnout in radiology, as well as radiology-themed humor. The purpose of this review article was discuss the role of altmetrics, as well as the specific uses of social media platforms including Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Youtube, and more. The role of ethics in social media practice related to radiology are discussed.

Social Media and Dermatology During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Analyzing User-Submitted Posts Seeking Dermatologic Advice on Reddit

INTRODUCTION

Reddit, a popular social media website, has numerous forums where users may discuss healthcare-related topics and request diagnostic and treatment advice for dermatologic conditions. We sought to analyze and grade user-submitted requests for dermatologic advice and their top responses on Reddit.

METHODS

User-submitted posts requesting diagnostic advice and their respective responses on two popular Reddit forums, SkinCareAddiction (ScA) and DermatologyQuestions (DQ), were reviewed by three board-certified dermatologists using a grading rubric designed for this study.

RESULTS

300 posts and comments were reviewed. Diagnoses among all graders matched in 52.3% of posts with a mean grader confidence score of 4/5 (95% CI 3.89-4.11). 31% of responder's comments recommended a diagnosis not included by any reviewer. Mean scores for the top comment's accuracy, appropriateness, and potential to be misleading/dangerous were 3.28/5 (95% CI 3.12-3.45), 3.3/5 (95% CI 3.14-3.45), and 2.33/5 (95% CI 2.18-2.48), respectively.

CONCLUSION

Reddit may be informative to patients requesting dermatologic advice. However, responses should be taken with caution as the information provided may be inaccurate or insufficient for treatment recommendations. Dermatologists should be aware of these resources used by patients.

Formación online en Radiología en tiempos de COVID

La pandemia por COVID-19 ha alterado de forma significativa la metodología que tradicionalmente se ha empleado para la enseñanza de la Radiología en pregrado, posgrado y formación continuada. La necesidad de continuar con la formación en Radiología bajo una situación de distanciamiento físico ha provocado el uso masivo de metodología online y aquí es donde Internet se ha constituido en una solución para mitigar el problema. El objetivo de este trabajo es presentar una serie de recursos útiles de acceso gratuito que comparten la filosofía #FOAMRad para la formación online en Radiología en estos tiempos de COVID.

Ophthalmology Inquiries on Reddit: What Should Physicians Know?

Purpose

Patients are seeking answers to personal medical questions on social media. Reddit, a popular social media site, has been overlooked as a source of data in the field of ophthalmology. We analyzed posts in the subreddit, r/Ophthalmology, to better understand the most common ophthalmic conditions patients are discussing online and how often those making posts are being advised to seek professional medical care.

Patients and Methods

This cross-sectional study analyzed posts and comments from March 18, 2018 to November 9, 2020. All posts and comments on r/Ophthalmology are public and were accessed using the Python Reddit API Wrapper. This text was analyzed for unique references to common ophthalmic conditions and for mentions and recommendations to different types of medical care.

Results

Nine hundred and nineteen posts were collected from the above timeframe. An auto-moderator makes a comment on every post to discourage patients from asking personal medical questions. Despite this, over two-thirds of posts discussed medical treatment for eye conditions in either a post, comment, or both. Almost half of all posts mention “ophthalmology”, but only 9% go as far as to recommend ophthalmic care. One-third of posts have no reference to medical care. Within posts, flashes and floaters were the most common condition mentioned, making up 15% of unique mentions, followed by glaucoma (7.4%) and retinal detachments (6.7%). Within comments, cataracts were most commonly discussed, making up 12% of unique mentions, followed by glaucoma (8.9%).

Conclusion

These findings show that patients are seeking information about their eye health on the r/Ophthalmology subreddit and that Reddit users are engaging with these types of posts, instead of recommending professional care in most cases. It is important for ophthalmologists to recognize the most common conditions patients are asking about online and learn how they can do a better job of educating their patients in the office.

Role of social and non-social online media: how to properly leverage your internet presence for professional development and research

The internet has become an integral component of daily life, with its content broadly grouped into social media and non-social online content. The use of social media, comprising interactive information sharing and networking tools, has proliferated in radiology, with as many as 85% of radiologists utilizing social media and adoption by both private and academic practices. In radiology, social media has been used to increase patient and public awareness of the specialty, establish a professional brand, share scholarly activity, aid in professional development and recruitment, improve communication, and increase engagement during scientific meetings. Organizations like the Society of Abdominal Radiology have increased the visibility of abdominal and pelvic radiology through their activity on social media; however, individual radiologists are integral to this function as well. In this article, we outline a stepwise approach to the individual use of social media, with practical tips for radiologists interested in effectively engaging the plethora of social media and non-social online content available. We also briefly discuss an approach to performing research using publicly available online media.