AB0807 TOAST-STUDY: TREATMENT AND OSTEOARTHRITIS, WHAT ARE PEOPLE SAYING ON TWITTER?

Abstract

Background:Osteoarthritis is a very common chronic disease. The information needs of patients vary depending on the health issue. Social media sites represent a novel source of health information and advice for patients with chronic diseases, such as osteoarthritis. Almost half of them use the internet to look for health related information [1]. No study has assessed the impact of social media on osteoarthritis and its treatment.Objectives:The purpose of this study was to evaluate frequently discussed osteoarthritis treatments on the social media Twitter.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed tweets, published between 1st and 31st January 2020, containing the keywords “osteoarthritis”. Only English language tweets were included. Tweets referred to veterinary medicine were excluded.Results:3587 tweets were analyzed. We identified 1737 tweets related to osteoarthritis treatment between 1st and 31st January 2020 (49.8%) (Figure 1). Dietary interventions were the most discussed treatment (18.3%, n=318/1737), including fruits, vegetables and plants (n=101), dietary supplements and vitamins (n=80), and spices (n=19). Physical medicine and rehabilitation (17.6%, n=305/1737) including sport (n=151), physiotherapy (n=70) and rehabilitation (n=57), were commonly discussed. Local therapies for osteoarthritis were also discussed by Twitter users (15.8%, n=274/1737). These included topical treatments such as anti-inflammatory gels and creams (n=23), and more invasive local treatments including intra-articular joint injections with corticosteroid (n=56), hyaluronans (n=29), stem cells (n=97), and Platelet-Rich Plasma (n=52). The frequently used systemic drugs were analgesia and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (n=113). Surgery and interventional radiology (genicular artery embolization) were also discussed (11.5%, n=199/1737). 5.6% tweets (n=97/1737) were related to alternative therapies. Predominant themes were related to marijuana (n=23), acupuncture treatment (n=17), homeopathy (n=10). Last but not least, 356 tweets (20.5%) referred to other websites including health programs.Conclusion:Our results demonstrate that osteoarthritis treatment is frequently discussed in published tweets. Thereby, social media could have an impact on behaviors and adherence on medication, and it seems interesting that learned societies, involved in osteoarthritis treatment, communicate more using social media.Figure 1.Osteoarthritis treatment discussed in published tweets