An Analysis of Alopecia Related Content on Instagram and TikTok.

BACKGROUND

Social media platforms continue to grow in popularity and have become common sources of medical information and education for patients struggling with hair loss.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to determine the characteristics of popular hair loss related content on Instagram and TikTok.

METHODS

The top 9 most popular posts within 10 hair loss related hashtags on Instagram and TikTok were analyzed. Quantitative and qualitative analysis was used to evaluate posts from December 2020. The characteristic of the author, content category, and number of likes were analyzed for each post.

RESULTS

Of 90 posts analyzed within Instagram, non-medical professional influencers created 66%, hair and wig companies created 29%, and medical professionals created 4%. Of 100 posts analyzed within TikTok, influencers created 38%, patients created 38%, hair and wig companies created 14%, and medical professionals created 10%. None of the top posts was created by board-certified dermatologists.

LIMITATIONS: This study was limited by the extent of data that can be collected from Instagram and TikTok.

CONCLUSIONS

A majority of the content promoted hair care products, services, or treatments not substantiated by evidence-based medicine. Instagram and TikTok provide new opportunities for dermatologists to educate the general population on alopecia while simultaneously correcting misinformation. J Drugs Dermatol. 2022;21(12):1316-1321. doi:10.36849/JDD.6707.