{"title":"Patient Awareness, Education, and Support for Atopic Dermatitis in Egypt and Lebanon: Results of a Physician Survey and Social Analytics","authors":"Mahira ElSayed, Magdy Ragab, Jinane El Khoury, Mazen Kurban, Marcelle Ghoubar, Nehal Hassan","doi":"10.1155/2024/5534555","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div>\n <p><b>Background and Aim:</b> Atopic dermatitis (AD) impacts the quality of life of patients and their families. This survey-based study aimed to understand the perspectives of physicians in Egypt and Lebanon regarding available educational initiatives and support programs for patients with AD, which was complemented by the social analytics study, offering a more comprehensive understanding of the perceptions of AD among social media users.</p>\n <p><b>Methods:</b> The survey included 200 physicians, comprising primary care physicians, family medicine physicians, pediatricians, and dermatologists from Egypt and Lebanon. The social analytics study leveraged artificial intelligence to analyze 100 million websites across the region, identifying mentions of AD-related terminologies.</p>\n <p><b>Results:</b> The physician survey uncovered gaps in AD awareness and education in Egypt and Lebanon, with limited educational initiatives and digital applications available for patients. The perceptions of physicians varied regarding the use of telemedicine in dermatological disease management. According to the social analytics study, online discussions about AD predominantly originated from Egypt, featuring educational content on causes, diagnosis, management, and AD patient journey. Discussions included news about training programs, AD-related healthcare initiatives, and drug approvals. Some authors, beauty clinics, and manufacturers actively promoted their services and products. Patients actively engaged in online discussions on self-care and natural remedies, sharing their experiences of living with AD. Notably, there were substantial volumes of incorrect and inaccurate information being shared and promoted by some authors.</p>\n <p><b>Conclusion:</b> Education about AD is crucial for patients and healthcare professionals. While social media offers opportunities for increased patient engagement, the prevalence of misinformation poses a significant challenge. Addressing issues related to education and discerning misinformation is essential for achieving optimal outcomes in the management of AD within the region.</p>\n </div>","PeriodicalId":11045,"journal":{"name":"Dermatologic Therapy","volume":"2024 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1155/2024/5534555","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Dermatologic Therapy","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1155/2024/5534555","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"DERMATOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background and Aim: Atopic dermatitis (AD) impacts the quality of life of patients and their families. This survey-based study aimed to understand the perspectives of physicians in Egypt and Lebanon regarding available educational initiatives and support programs for patients with AD, which was complemented by the social analytics study, offering a more comprehensive understanding of the perceptions of AD among social media users.
Methods: The survey included 200 physicians, comprising primary care physicians, family medicine physicians, pediatricians, and dermatologists from Egypt and Lebanon. The social analytics study leveraged artificial intelligence to analyze 100 million websites across the region, identifying mentions of AD-related terminologies.
Results: The physician survey uncovered gaps in AD awareness and education in Egypt and Lebanon, with limited educational initiatives and digital applications available for patients. The perceptions of physicians varied regarding the use of telemedicine in dermatological disease management. According to the social analytics study, online discussions about AD predominantly originated from Egypt, featuring educational content on causes, diagnosis, management, and AD patient journey. Discussions included news about training programs, AD-related healthcare initiatives, and drug approvals. Some authors, beauty clinics, and manufacturers actively promoted their services and products. Patients actively engaged in online discussions on self-care and natural remedies, sharing their experiences of living with AD. Notably, there were substantial volumes of incorrect and inaccurate information being shared and promoted by some authors.
Conclusion: Education about AD is crucial for patients and healthcare professionals. While social media offers opportunities for increased patient engagement, the prevalence of misinformation poses a significant challenge. Addressing issues related to education and discerning misinformation is essential for achieving optimal outcomes in the management of AD within the region.
期刊介绍:
Dermatologic Therapy has been created to fill an important void in the dermatologic literature: the lack of a readily available source of up-to-date information on the treatment of specific cutaneous diseases and the practical application of specific treatment modalities. Each issue of the journal consists of a series of scholarly review articles written by leaders in dermatology in which they describe, in very specific terms, how they treat particular cutaneous diseases and how they use specific therapeutic agents. The information contained in each issue is so practical and detailed that the reader should be able to directly apply various treatment approaches to daily clinical situations. Because of the specific and practical nature of this publication, Dermatologic Therapy not only serves as a readily available resource for the day-to-day treatment of patients, but also as an evolving therapeutic textbook for the treatment of dermatologic diseases.