(096) #SexMed: The Sexual Medicine Tag Ontology Project

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Female sexual dysfunction includes many different conditions that involve desire, arousal, orgasm, and pain. More than 40% of American women report sexual problems and nearly 12% meet the criteria for a diagnosed sexual dysfunction. Given the sensitivity of the topic, many women turn to the Internet to find information. In specific, social media allows users to interact with others by creating, viewing and commenting on content. “Hashtags” are a type of metadata tag that are preceded by the symbol “#”. By adding this symbol, social media platforms are able to compile relevant information in a single place, streamlining pertinent information and allowing for users to find others with similar interests and create new communities based on a common interest. Objective The aim of this study is to develop a tag ontology and to identify the top social media influencers for female sexual medicine. Methods Symplur is a Twitter analytic tool that identifies tweets and hashtags related to a specific topic. This software was used to create a “tag ontology”, a standardized list of hashtags, using the search terms “sexual medicine”, “women’s sexual health” and “female sexual dysfunction” between November 1, 2020 and November 1, 2022. The hashtag ontology list created by Symplur was then reviewed by social media influencers for inclusivity and external validation. A proprietary Symplur algorithm was used to identify Top Influencers. Results We identified 3800 tweets during the study time period. In total, the ontology included 22 terms (Table 1). Medical and vernacular terms were included in the “tag ontology” so the list included terms accessible to both women and healthcare providers. Of the top 20 influencers, 10 were physicians, 7 were major medical societies, 2 were academic journals and 1 was industry related. A visual of the top 15 influencers appears in Figure 1. Conclusions Creation of a standardized hashtag ontology consolidates communication between healthcare providers and patients about specific health information. Our study has created a “tag ontology” for female sexual medicine that can be utilized to streamline pertinent information between providers and women. Disclosure No