AI Summary & Key Takeaways
AI InsightResults: Overall, 61.0% were women, 95.6% used social media, and 40.6% were considering a procedure.
📌 3 Key Takeaways
Abstract
Aims: Social media is a common source of health information and a factor in provider choice. This study examined how social media use relates to physician selection and to the tendency to undergo aesthetic procedures in adults and how these associations vary with age, educational level, and use habits. Methods: A total of 1030 volunteers aged 18 years and older were enrolled between February 2020 and August 2021 by convenience sampling. Data were collected face-to-face and online with a researcher-developed 30-item questionnaire whose content was reviewed by three experts (no formal psychometric validation was performed). Non-parametric tests (Chi-square, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis H) and effect sizes were used; significance was p<0.05. Results: Overall, 61.0% were women, 95.6% used social media, and 40.6% were considering a procedure. The importance attributed to social media in physician selection increased with daily use duration (p<0.001), and those using social media for 1 hour or more daily reported a greater desire for a procedure (p<0.001). This importance did not differ by age, although participants aged 56 years and older reported less desire (p<0.001). The most important criterion was personal references, followed by physician experience, while the physician's gender was considered the least important. Prior communication with a physician via social media was associated with having undergone a procedure (p<0.001). Conclusion: Social media use was associated with physician selection and with the desire for aesthetic procedures, most clearly among heavy users, with no difference across age groups; associations were weak, and no causal inference can be drawn. Used ethically, social media may aid patient information and outreach.