Summary
This article explores how information about age-related diseases features on popular social media platforms; examining (i) who uses social media to share information about dementia, (ii) the sources of information about dementia used / promoted, and (iii) the dementia-related themes which dominate discussion.
The microblogging platform Twitter was data-mined for content containing dementia-related keywords. It was found that most tweets contain links to third-party sites rather than personal information, and links are often redirected to news sites and health information sites. Many tweets discuss recent research findings related to the prediction and risk management of dementia.
The dementia research community may wish to harness this medium as a tool for patient and public engagement.
Reference
Robillard, JM. Johnson, TW. [and] Hennessey, C. [et al] (2013). Aging 2.0: Health Information about Dementia on Twitter. PloS One, July 26th 2013, Vol.8(7), e69861. (Click here to view the PubMed abstract).
[A brief reference to this item features in Dementia and Elderly Care: the Latest Evidence Newsletter (RWNHST), Volume 3 Issue 9, August 2013].
