Social media use may help to empower plastic surgery patients
Survey suggests positive effects on patient decision-making, reports Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®
WOLTERS KLUWER HEALTH
Waltham — March 28, 2024 — For patients considering or undergoing plastic and reconstructive surgery (PRS) procedures, using social media to gather information and answer questions can enhance patient empowerment – potentially leading to increased autonomy and better decision-making, reports a study in the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.
"Our study suggests that connecting to social media is associated with meaningful increases in empowerment for PRS patients, and may have positive effects on patient-centered decision-making," comments ASPS Member Surgeon Samuel J. Lin, MD, MBA, of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston.
Social media use linked to higher empowerment scores
The researchers performed an online survey using Amazon's Mechanical Turk crowdsourcing platform. Of 473 respondents, about 70% had undergone some type of PRS: cosmetic in 40%, reconstructive in 23%, and both cosmetic and reconstructive in eight percent. A modified version of the Cyber Info-Decisional Empowerment Scale (CIDES) was used to explore assoiciations between social media and patient empowerment.
About three-fourths of patients reported seeking plastic surgery information online at some time during their PRS experience. Depending on the resources used, patients who obtained information online had higher scores for patient empowerment.
In particular, social media users scored higher on six out of seven CIDES categories: patient knowledge; the decision to consult with a plastic surgeon and questions during the consultation; and treatment decision-making, awareness of treatment decisions, and awareness of other treatment options.
Compared to those using other social media platforms, Facebook users had higher scores in certain categories: decision to consult, questions during consultation, and awareness of other treatment options. RealSelf, a plastic surgery-focused platform, was also associated with increased empowerment in treatment options.
Plastic surgeons urged to 'engage with and contribute to' social media
Social media use had a greater impact on empowerment for patients undergoing cosmetic breast surgery, and for reconstructive procedures on the abdomen/trunk or hand. Most patients said that they received helpful information from their plastic surgeon's office, although some found this information difficult to read.
"As medical care shifts toward a model of patient-centered decision-making, it's important to understand how online information, and social media in particular, affects patient empowerment," says Dr. Lin. "Our findings suggest that social media can be a useful tool to promote patient autonomy and decision-making among patients considering PRS procedures." Previous studies suggest that patient empowerment is associated with improved healthcare experiences and outcomes.
Social media platforms such as Facebook and RealSelf offer a "forum-like interface" for patients to post questions and read opinions from other patients and physicians, providing a "sense of community or connection." Dr. Lin adds: "Plastic surgeons can contribute to patient empowerment by engaging with and contributing to social media platforms, providing information based on evidence-based care, and ensuring that the information provided by their office is readable and understandable."
Wolters Kluwer provides trusted clinical technology and evidence-based solutions that engage clinicians, patients, researchers and students in effective decision-making and outcomes across healthcare. We support clinical effectiveness, learning and research, clinical surveillance and compliance, as well as data solutions. For more information about our solutions, visit https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/health.
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About Wolters Kluwer
Wolters Kluwer (EURONEXT: WKL) is a global leader in information, software solutions and services for professionals in healthcare; tax and accounting; financial and corporate compliance; legal and regulatory; corporate performance and ESG. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with technology and services.
Wolters Kluwer reported 2023 annual revenues of €5.6 billion. The group serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 21,400 people worldwide. The company is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.
For more information, visit www.wolterskluwer.com, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.
JOURNAL
Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
ARTICLE TITLE
Which groups of plastic surgery patients are impacted by social media use: An in-depth review of social media engagement
ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE
27-Mar-2024
Social media images of pediatric craniofacial patients – parents voice concerns
Surgeons should seek consent from children as young as nine years, suggests survey in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®
Waltham — March 29, 2024 — Parents voice strong concerns about social media sharing of images of children undergoing craniofacial surgery, reports a survey study in the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.
"Pediatric plastic surgeons must understand that consent and assent are necessary before posting patient images online," comments senior author Kenneth L. Fan, MD, of Georgetown University Hospital. "Based on our findings, we recommend seeking consent from not only the parents but also the children themselves, at ages as young as nine years."
The study was performed in partnership by researchers from Georgetown and University of Michigan. Dr. Fan's coauthors were Samuel S. Huffman, BS, Peter T. Hetzler III, MD, MHS, Steven B. Baker, MD, DDS, and Christian J. Vercler, MD.
Study explores parental perceptions of posting children's photos online
Social media use has become widespread in plastic surgery, raising potential ethical and professional concerns. Sharing patient images can play a valuable role in information and education for plastic surgeons and other healthcare professionals, as well as patients and families.
Posting images of children with craniofacial deformities poses unique ethical challenges because they show the head and face, by definition they make the child potentially identifiable. While patients always have the right to revoke permission to share images or other personal information, images posted on social media leave a "permanent online footprint."
The researchers designed an online survey exploring parents' perceptions of social media use by pediatric plastic surgeons. The anonymous survey included examples of full-face pictures of children, ranging from infants to preteens, who underwent craniofacial surgery. All images had been publicly posted by surgeons on popular social media platforms.
Survey questions highlighted the consent/assent process and professional issues raised by social media posting. Of 656 responding parents, six percent had a child who had been operated on by a plastic surgeon. Parents overwhelmingly believed that surgeons need to obtain consent before posting pictures of children on social media. About 90% of respondents indicated that surgeons must obtain consent from parents before sharing images, regardless of the child's age.
Social media sharing should 'focus on the vulnerability of the patient'
Respondents also believed that surgeons should seek consent from the children themselves before sharing images. The average age at which parents thought surgeons needed to obtain the child's consent was 9.65 years. Nearly half of parents felt that surgeons need to document assent for younger children and even for infants – "even if only to say the child is not old enough for proper assent," the researchers write.
Parents who followed plastic surgeons on social media were more likely to believe that surgeons need to document assent from all pediatric patients. Forty percent of parents felt that children portrayed in pictures on social media were being exploited, regardless of age. This view was more common among parents with higher levels of education.
"Our study suggests that a strong majority of parents believe that surgeons should obtain written consent from parents before posting pictures of pediatric patients on social media," Dr. Fan and colleagues write. They note that this finding is consistent with the ASPS Code of Ethics social media policy, which can be found here.
Dr. Fan and coauthors conclude: "The use of social media by craniofacial plastic surgeons has the promise to positively affect the field, but it must be done professionally and ethically with an intentional focus on the vulnerability of the patient."
[ Read Article: "Parents’ Perceptions of Social Media Use by Pediatric Plastic Surgeons" ]
Wolters Kluwer provides trusted clinical technology and evidence-based solutions that engage clinicians, patients, researchers and students in effective decision-making and outcomes across healthcare. We support clinical effectiveness, learning and research, clinical surveillance and compliance, as well as data solutions. For more information about our solutions, visit https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/health.
###
About Wolters Kluwer
Wolters Kluwer (EURONEXT: WKL) is a global leader in information, software solutions and services for professionals in healthcare; tax and accounting; financial and corporate compliance; legal and regulatory; corporate performance and ESG. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with technology and services.
Wolters Kluwer reported 2023 annual revenues of €5.6 billion. The group serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 21,400 people worldwide. The company is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.
For more information, visit www.wolterskluwer.com, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.
JOURNAL
Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
ARTICLE TITLE
Parents’ Perceptions of Social Media Use by Pediatric Plastic Surgeons
ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE
29-Mar-2024
Researchers produce grafts that replicate the human ear
IMAGE:
PICTURED IS THE INTRICATE, LEFT-EAR PLASTIC SCAFFOLD THAT WAS CREATED ON A 3D PRINTER BASED ON DATA FROM A PERSON’S EAR, ANTERIOR VIEW (LEFT) AND POSTERIOR VIEW (RIGHT).
view moreCREDIT: SPECTOR LAB
Researchers Produce Grafts that Replicate the Human Ear
Using state-of-the-art tissue engineering techniques and a 3D printer, researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell Engineering have assembled a replica of an adult human ear that looks and feels natural. The study, published online in Acta Biomaterialia on March 16, offers the promise of grafts with well-defined anatomy and the correct biomechanical properties for those who are born with a congenital malformation or who lose an ear later in life.
“Ear reconstruction requires multiple surgeries and an incredible amount of artistry and finesse,” said, Dr. Jason Spector, chief of the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and a professor of surgery (plastic surgery) at Weill Cornell Medicine. “This new technology may eventually provide an option that feels real for thousands needing surgery to correct outer ear deformities.”
Many surgeons build a replacement ear using cartilage removed from a child’s ribs, an operation that can be painful and scarring. And though the resulting graft can be crafted to resemble the recipient’s other ear, it generally does not have the same flexibility.
Adding Texture to Structure
One way to produce a more natural replacement ear is to enlist the aid of chondrocytes, the cells that build cartilage. In earlier studies, Dr. Spector and his colleagues used animal-derived chondrocytes to seed a scaffold made of collagen, a key component of cartilage. Though these grafts developed successfully at first, over time the well-defined topography of the ear—its familiar ridges, curves, and whorls—were lost. “Because the cells tug on the woven matrix of proteins as they labor, the ear contracted and shrank by half,” said Dr. Spector.
To address this problem in this study, Dr. Spector and his team used sterilized animal-derived cartilage treated to remove anything that could trigger immune rejection. This was loaded into intricate, ear-shaped plastic scaffolds that were created on a 3D printer based on data from a person’s ear. The small pieces of cartilage act as internal reinforcements to induce new tissue formation within the scaffold. Much like rebar, it strengthens the graft and prevents contraction.
Over the next three to six months, the structure developed into cartilage containing tissue that closely replicated the ear’s anatomical features, including the helical rim, the “anti-helix” rim-inside-the-rim and the central, conchal bowl. “That’s something that we had not achieved before,” said Dr. Spector.
To test the feel of the ear, biomechanical studies were performed in conjunction with Dr. Spector's long time engineering collaborator Dr. Larry Bonassar, the Daljit S. and Elaine Sarkaria Professor in Biomedical Engineering at the Meinig School of Biomedical Engineering on Cornell’s Ithaca campus. This confirmed that the replicas had flexibility and elasticity similar to human ear cartilage. However, the engineered material was not as strong as natural cartilage and could tear.
To remedy this issue, Dr. Spector plans to add chondrocytes to the mix, ideally ones derived from a small piece of cartilage removed from the recipient’s other ear. Those cells would lay down the elastic proteins that make ear cartilage so robust, producing a graft that would be biomechanically much more similar to the native ear, he said.
This work was supported in part by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health, grant TL1- TR-002386.
Many Weill Cornell Medicine physicians and scientists maintain relationships and collaborate with external organizations to foster scientific innovation and provide expert guidance. The institution makes these disclosures public to ensure transparency. For this information, please see the profile for Dr. Spector.
JOURNAL
Acta Biomaterialia
