PO:08:118 | “Posting Arthritis”: rheumatoid arthritis vs. juvenile idiopathic arthritis contents on social media

Daniele Domanico¹, Saverio La Bella^2|3, Angelica Napoletano¹, Teresa Caferri¹, Angela Carenza¹, Armando Di Ludovico², Marta Rinaldi⁴, Simone Perniola¹, Vincenzo Venerito¹, Giuseppe Lopalco¹, Florenzo Iannone¹. | ¹Rheumatology Unit Department of Precision and Regenerative Medicine Jonian Area, Bari; ²Pediatric Rheumatology Unit University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti; ³UOC Rheumatology and Autoinflammatory Diseases, IRCCS Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genova, Italy; ⁴Paediatric Department, John Radcliffe Hospital Oxford University Hospitalsù, Oxford, UK

Abstract

Background. Social media platforms are among the most popular sources used by patients and caregivers to obtain information on health-related topics, including rheumatological diseases (1). The aim of this study was to evaluate the social media content related to the most common types of autoimmune arthritis in both adults and children, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). We also aimed to assess differences between adult and pediatric rheumatology content and between content published by health professionals (HPs) and non-health professionals (NHPs).

Methods and Materials The 150 most popular posts related to RA (assessed through “rheumatoid arthritis”) and JIA (assessed through “juvenile idiopathic arthritis,” “juvenile rheumatoid arthritis,” and “juvenile arthritis”) were evaluated on the popular social media platforms Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. For each content, either photo or video, we collected data on the type of content creator, engagement metrics (likes, comments, saves, shares, and interactions), and the primary purpose of the content. For videos, additional data on views and duration were recorded. Educational videos were evaluated using validated and standardized tools: quality was assessed using the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Benchmark Scale, while understandability and actionability were measured using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool for Audiovisual Materials (PEMAT-A/V). The presence of disinformation was categorized as “absent,” “minimal,” or “significant.” Results We included 1.713 posts (572 on RA and 1.141 on JIA) from TikTok (666; 39%), Instagram (590; 34%), and Facebook (457; 27%), achieving 179.9 million views and 5.4 million interactions. NHPs were the majority of creators (1.336; 78%), mostly consisting of patients (801; 47%), while rheumatologists (34; 2%) and pediatric rheumatologists (17: 1%) were a minority. Most content was shared for reporting a patient experience (844; 49%), while educational posts were a significant portion of the sample (502; 29%). Among educational content, videos related to RA were more viewed (26.738 [5.998-130.437] vs 1.034 [62-9.052], p<0.0001), with more interactions (922 [189-3.338] vs 40 [4-298], p<0.0001), of greater understandability (PEMAT-A/V 77.8 [63.6-90] vs 71.4 [60-85.7], p=0.044), and actionability (PEMAT-A/V 66.6 [33.3-100] vs 50 [33.3-66.7], p=0.003) than those related to JIA (Figure 1). Overall, videos created by HPs were of higher quality than those shared by NHPs (JAMA 3 [3-3] vs 3 [2-3], p=0.012), while photos by NHPs were more liked (218 [46-388] vs 89 [14-297], p=0.046) and commented (10 [3-34] vs 2 [1-8], p<0.0001), showing a higher engagement.

Conclusions. There is a growing use of social media for educational purpose by patients and caregivers. However, the number of HPs as content creators is still limited. HPs could significantly impact the dissemination of accurate and understandable knowledge to patients and caregivers through these modern communication channels.

Keywords

• Social media
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Juvenile idiopathic arthritis