Anjali Om1, Bobby Ijeoma1, Sara Kebede1, Albert Losken1. 1. Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: TikTok is one of the most popular and fastest growing social media apps in the world. Previous studies have analyzed the quality of patient education information on older video platforms, but the quality of plastic and cosmetic surgery videos on TikTok has not yet been determined. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the source and quality of certain cosmetic procedure videos on TikTok. METHODS: The TikTok mobile application was queried for content related to two popular face procedures (rhinoplasty and blepharoplasty) and two body procedures (breast augmentation and abdominoplasty). Two independent reviewers analyzed video content according to the DISCERN scale, a validated, objective criteria that assesses the quality of information on a scale of 1-5. Quality scores were compared between videos produced by medical and nonmedical creators and between different content categories. RESULTS: There were 4.8 billion views and 76.2 million likes across included videos. Videos were created by MDs (56%) and laypersons (44%). Overall average DISCERN score out of 5 corresponded to very poor video quality for rhinoplasty (1.55), blepharoplasty (1.44), breast augmentation (1.25) and abdominoplasty (1.29). DISCERN scores were significantly higher among videos produced by MDs than by laypersons for all surgeries. Comedy videos consistently had the lowest average DISCERN scores, while educational videos had the highest. CONCLUSIONS: It is increasingly important that medical professionals understand the possibility of patient misinformation in the age of social media. We encourage medical providers to be involved in creating quality information on TikTok and educate patients about misinformation to best support health literacy.
BACKGROUND: TikTok is one of the most popular and fastest growing social media apps in the world. Previous studies have analyzed the quality of patient education information on older video platforms, but the quality of plastic and cosmetic surgery videos on TikTok has not yet been determined. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the source and quality of certain cosmetic procedure videos on TikTok. METHODS: The TikTok mobile application was queried for content related to two popular face procedures (rhinoplasty and blepharoplasty) and two body procedures (breast augmentation and abdominoplasty). Two independent reviewers analyzed video content according to the DISCERN scale, a validated, objective criteria that assesses the quality of information on a scale of 1-5. Quality scores were compared between videos produced by medical and nonmedical creators and between different content categories. RESULTS: There were 4.8 billion views and 76.2 million likes across included videos. Videos were created by MDs (56%) and laypersons (44%). Overall average DISCERN score out of 5 corresponded to very poor video quality for rhinoplasty (1.55), blepharoplasty (1.44), breast augmentation (1.25) and abdominoplasty (1.29). DISCERN scores were significantly higher among videos produced by MDs than by laypersons for all surgeries. Comedy videos consistently had the lowest average DISCERN scores, while educational videos had the highest. CONCLUSIONS: It is increasingly important that medical professionals understand the possibility of patient misinformation in the age of social media. We encourage medical providers to be involved in creating quality information on TikTok and educate patients about misinformation to best support health literacy.
Authors: Jithin John; Rohun Gupta; Pushtee Jhaveri; Eduardo M Leon; Eric Cox; Jonathan Raskin; Neil J Khatter; Ricky Sayal; Adam Folbe Journal: Health Sci Rep Date: 2022-06-27