Orthodontic-related posts on Instagram: are they evidence based?

To determine the prevalence of orthodontic-related evidence-based posts on Instagram. A secondary aim was to assess the quality of studies cited within these orthodontic-related posts.

A cross-sectional analysis of publicly available Instagram posts was conducted between April 1 and November 30, 2025. Posts were identified using eight orthodontic hashtags (#orthodontics, #orthobiomechanics, #damonbraces, #clearaligners, #invisalign, #tads, #airwayorthodontics, #myofunctionalorthodontics). The first 200 eligible posts per hashtag were included. Screening and data extraction of post characteristics was conducted in duplicate and independently. For posts citing evidence, the referenced articles were retrieved, and the study quality assessed. Descriptive statistics and frequency distributions were calculated.

From 1600 posts analyzed, the content type was predominantly treatment descriptions (710/1600) and marketing (618/1600), with 187 categorized as educational. Engagement was modest (median likes: 21). Critically, only 25 posts cited any scientific evidence. Among these, narrative reviews (6/25) and epidemiological studies (5/25) were the most frequently cited study types. Of the 23 citable articles retrieved, five were rated as high quality, nine moderate quality, and nine low quality.

This study confirms a lack of evidence-based orthodontic posts on Instagram. The small number of posts that cite scientific literature rely on moderate to low-quality studies. A coordinated effort among clinicians, professional societies, and online platforms is required to improve the credibility and quality of orthodontic information.