Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 12, 2025

A Novel Digital Platform for a Monitored Home-based Cardiac Rehabilitation Program
Published on: April 19, 2019
Using social media to recruit study participants for a randomized trial for hypertension
Lida Feyz1, Yale Wang2, Atul Pathak3
1Department of Cardiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center, Room Rg-632, PO Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Aims:
The present study aimed to evaluate the potential of social media as an approach to recruit hypertensive subjects.
Methods And Results:
In addition to conventional trial recruitment, Facebook ads were run. Over a 115-day recruitment period, Facebook reached 5.3 million people in 168 separate campaigns run in the proximity of 19 sites in the USA and 14 sites in Europe. A total of 182 839 participants (3.4%) clicked on the ad; of those 10 483 subjects (5.7%) completed a dedicated questionnaire. This resulted in 3632 potential candidates. A total of 285 potential candidates were recruited by various recruitment strategies in the specified time period, of which 184/285 (64.6%) came from Facebook. When comparing Facebook with a 7-day radio spot in the same time period, 48 radio spots were launched; resulting in nine inquiries with eventually five potential candidates and two consents.
Conclusion:
Targeted social media was a successful and efficient strategy to recruit hypertensive subjects.
Related Concept Videos
Hypertension III: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Studies
Longitudinal Studies
Hypertension IV: Drug Therapy and Lifestyle Modifications
Hypertension I: Introduction
Hypertension and Regulation of Blood Pressure
Hypertension II: Pathophysiology

