The Promises and Perils of Social Media for Pediatric Rheumatology

Jonathan S Hausmann; Elissa R Weitzman

doi:10.1016/j.rdc.2021.09.005

The Promises and Perils of Social Media for Pediatric Rheumatology

Rheum Dis Clin North Am. 2022 Feb;48(1):233-243. doi: 10.1016/j.rdc.2021.09.005.

Authors

Jonathan S Hausmann¹, Elissa R Weitzman²

Affiliations

¹ Program in Rheumatology, Division of Immunology, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Fegan 6, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address: jonathan.hausmann@childrens.harvard.edu.
² Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Computational Health Informatics Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

Abstract

The advent of social media has revolutionized and empowered communities of people living with rare diseases. Social media has enabled families of children with similar pediatric rheumatic diseases (PRDs) to meet regardless of geographic distance, allowing them to support each other and join together to advocate on behalf of their children. Researchers have also leveraged social media to learn about the health of patients and their communities. This article reviews the promises and perils of social media related to health, focusing on its potential use to support research and care of children with PRD.

Keywords: Digital technology; Patient support organizations; Pediatric rheumatology; Research; Self-help groups; Social media.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Child
Humans
Rheumatic Diseases* / therapy
Rheumatology*
Social Media*

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding