Gynecomastia Trends on TikTok

Gynecomastia can cause significant distress, especially in young men. TikTok is a rapidly growing social media platform and information source for this demographic, but the platform's content and quality can be unreliable. This study assesses the quality and engagement of gynecomastia-related content on TikTok and evaluates the risk of misinformation using validated and widely used scoring tools.

This study analyzed English-language gynecomastia-related TikTok videos. Search parameters included ten relevant hashtags, and the top twenty-five videos per hashtag (or maximum available) were analyzed. Video viewing metrics and quality assessment (validated mDISCERN and PEMAT tools) were collected and calculated. Videos were categorized by creator and video type.

The hashtags "#gynecomastiasurgeon" (84%) and "#gynecomastiasurgery" (64%) had the highest representation of videos by plastic surgeons. Patient videos had more comments compared to physician-created videos (p = 0.004). Lay/other-created videos scored lower on quality and understandability (mDISCERN, p < 0.001; PEMAT, p < 0.001). Content creator type was associated with mDISCERN scores (p < 0.001), while video type was associated with PEMAT scores (p < 0.001). Neither factor was associated with engagement score (p = 0.484). Overall, lay/other category videos had relatively high engagement, but lower-quality scores (mDISCERN and PEMAT), suggesting a greater risk of misinformation.

Patient-created videos garnered higher comment engagement, while lay/other videos demonstrated lower-quality content, highlighting the need for healthcare professionals to create high-quality content on TikTok to counter the risk of misinformation. When information is gathered and disseminated accurately, social media platforms can serve as wide-reaching methods for patient engagement and education.

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