Table 3.

Conclusions of survey based studies

Title	Main conclusions
Current Trends in the Use of Social Media by Plastic Surgeons	Salaried users used social media for non-medical interests (75%), public education (38.3%) and networking (35%). Private practice users were similar for public education, but also used them for patient acquisition (74.3%) and practice branding (61%). Both groups had Facebook, but only private practice used Instagram and Pinterest. Salaried non-users were more concerned about breach of patient privacy (60% vs 38.9%). Compared to non-users, more social media users thought before and after photographs and reviews were acceptable. Within this, younger, aesthetic focused surgeons were more likely to find these acceptable.
Social Media Use among Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Residency Programs in the United States	85% of residency programs using social media had Instagram. Most common uses were branding (77%), education (74%) and residency recruitment (66%). Only 69% of faculties had guidelines for SoMe use, 51% of programs had no training for residents and faculty, and only 58% of programs had reprimands in place for inappropriate use. Breach of patient privacy was found in 11% of programs and 31% had professionalism concerns.
Social Media Use and Impact on Plastic Surgery Practice	Most respondents had a largely cosmetic practice (32%). Nearly equal numbers were users vs non users (50.4% and 49.6%, respectively). Facebook was the most used social media for all surgeons. 75.1% of users had separate personal and professional accounts. Top reasons for use included “incorporation of social media into practice is inevitable” (56.7%), “effective marketing tool” (52.1%) and “provides a platform for patient education” (49%). Reasons for not using social media included concerns about maintaining professionalism (54.1%), preserving patient confidentiality (48.8%) and becoming too accessible (45.9%). 24.5% felt governing bodies should have more oversight of plastic surgeons’ use of social media.
The Evolution of Patients’ and Surgeons’ Perspectives Towards the Role of the Internet and Social Media in Breast Augmentation Over 5 Years	% of surgeons who thought the internet and social media led to better information declined over time (61.7% in 2014, 42.0% in 2017 and 35.4% in 2019). Similar thing occurred with social media leading to unrealistic expectations (38.3% in 2014, 56.5% in 2017 and 65.3% in 2019). However, number of respondents who thought plastic surgery content should be removed from social media went down (21.9% in 2014 to 9.7% in 2019). 97.9% of respondents in 2019 had a presence on social media and 67% posted content related to surgery and post-operative results. Top 5 platforms were Facebook (74.7%), Instagram (64.2%), LinkedIn (28.4%), Twitter (17.9%) and Snapchat (5.3%).
Usage trends, perceptions and ethical views regarding social media: A survey of Canadian plastic surgeons	37% had a single account for personal and professional use, 27% just personal, 19% just professional, only 5% had two accounts. Those with just a professional account had the most active usage (posting at least once a day). 45% thought it was not ethical to discuss procedures with patients over social media. Surgeons without a professional account more likely to believe posting operative photographs is unethical (75% vs 21%). Surgeons without a professional account were also more likely to have an academic portion to their practice (100%) compared to those with a professional account (68%).