Research Corner - Content analysis of oral hygiene instruction posts on Instagram: a cross-sectional study
Dr. Kitty Guo has kindly written this month's precis of a recently published article.
Content analysis of oral hygiene instruction posts on Instagram: a cross-sectional study
Social media use, compounded by generative AI and changes in the global political climate has led to changes in the way the world shares knowledge or what is perceived as knowledge. This includes the way patients and the public access information relating to their periodontal and oral health.
This study of Instagram posts on oral health education identifies that while over half of posts eligible were from dental professionals, posts originating from individuals making promotional content achieved higher engagement metrics. Additionally, while most posts were ‘understandable’, many were not easily translatable into actionable steps.
Patients and the public will inevitably seek clarification about information they encounter on social media. Perhaps one part of addressing this is to ask them to reflect on whether posts were made primarily for promotional purposes or with genuine educational intent. Though of course, a dental professional posting about dentistry may also serve promotional goals.