Dupuytren's in the Public Eye: The Impact of Direct-to-Consumer Advertising on Public Interest and Treatment Patterns

In 2019, the "Facts on Hand" direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) campaign, featuring former NFL quarterback John Elway, was launched to raise awareness of Dupuytren's contracture (DC) and its nonsurgical treatment options. Although DTCA has been shown to influence health care behavior in other specialties, its impact on treatment patterns for hand conditions remains unclear.

Google Trends was used to examine the influence of direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) on Internet-based information-seeking behavior related to DC. Changes in the proportion of surgical and nonsurgical management of DC were evaluated using 2016-2021 Medicare provider billing claims.

Search interest in DC peaked during the campaign period, with breakout-level increases (>5000%) for terms such as "John Elway," "needle aponeurotomy," and "hand surgeon near me." Medicare data revealed regionally significant increases in CCH utilization, particularly in the Midwest (+10%) and Northeast (+5%), with corresponding declines in fasciectomy. Regional overlap between increased search activity and shifts in treatment patterns suggests a geographically reinforced campaign effect.

The "Facts on Hand" campaign was associated with increased public interest in DC and coincided with regionally specific shifts in treatment utilization. Although the campaign emphasized a nonsurgical option, breakout searches for terms such as "hand surgeon near me" and "Dupuytren's surgery" suggest that treatment-specific advertising may have encouraged broader engagement with treatment overall. These findings highlight the potential for DTCA to not only raise awareness of the condition itself but also prompt patients to seek specialist care.