Oocyte cryopreservation on tiktok and instagram: who is teaching whom?

Oocyte cryopreservation (OC) is a commonly used medical intervention for young reproductive aged women, a demographic that uses social media heavily. The accuracy and availability of OC videos have not been thoroughly evaluated. The objective of this study is to characterize the top TikTok videos and Instagram reels on OC by source, content, impact, and quality. Five hashtags pertaining to OC were selected including #oocytepreservation, #oocytecryopreservation, #eggfreezing, #oocytefreezing, and #fertilitypreservation. Content analysis was performed in April 2023 and included up to the first 50 TikTok videos and Instagram reels for each of the five hashtags based on predefined algorithms. Each video was characterized by source, content, and impact. If deemed educational, it was further evaluated for accuracy based on the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) Benchmark Criteria (4-point scale). A total of 332 posts were reviewed. Out of the five hashtags, the two most popular on TikTok and Instagram were #eggfreezing (n=5.6 million views) followed by #fertilitypreservation (n=68500+ posts). The sources across all five hashtags on TikTok and Instagram respectively were as follows: patients (57.8%, 35.2%), physicians (17.0%, 32.4%), IVF clinics (13.6%, 8.1%), for-profit commercial groups (4.8%, 12.4%), allied healthcare professionals (6.8%, 8.1%), and other (0%, 3.8%). There were no videos shared by professional societies. Educational content (53.1%, 48.6%) was the most frequent content shared on TikTok and Instagram; followed by personal experiences (36.1%, 21.6%) and promotional material (6.1%, 19.5%). Educational content was more accurate on both TikTok and Instagram when posted by medical professionals compared to patients (p <0.001, p <0.001).The hashtag #eggfreezing had the greatest impact among all five hashtags for both patients and medical professionals based on the number of shares (n=9653, n=3093), likes (n=713263, n=120700), and comments (n=35453, n=1478). TikTok videos and Instagram reels are a growing mechanism to reach women and potential patients for health topics, including OC. The majority of available videos are from patients, focus on education topics, and are less accurate in comparison to medical professionals. IVF clinics and professional societies have an opportunity to increase their social media presence to improve the availability and accuracy of health information pertaining to OC.