TOPLINE:

A cross-sectional survey found that social media frequently influenced treatment decisions among children and young adults with alopecia, although direct-to-consumer (DTC) treatments were associated with inconsistent benefits, low satisfaction, and occasional adverse effects.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers conducted a cross-sectional survey of 115 patients aged 25 years or younger (median age, 14 years; 63% female; 63% White, 11% Black, 8% Asian) with physician-diagnosed alopecia at Boston Children’s Hospital dermatology clinics between November 2024 and September 2025.
• Surveys were administered to caregivers of patients aged 1-17 years and to patients aged 18-25 years, with diagnoses that included alopecia areata, androgenetic alopecia, chemotherapy-induced alopecia, and telogen effluvium.
• The researchers collected data on demographics, level of worry about hair loss, and social media engagement patterns (including platforms used, frequency, perceived usefulness, credibility of content, and use and perceived effectiveness of DTC treatments).

TAKEAWAY:

• Overall, 65% of respondents reported social media use, increasing from 34% among children younger than 12 years to 72% among those aged 12-17 years and 90% among those aged 18-25 years (P < .001).
• Among 74 social media users, 59% (n = 43) reported seeing hair loss-related content, most commonly on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Of these 43 respondents, 28% reported trying hair loss treatments recommended on these platforms, with a low level of satisfaction.
• Among the 43 respondents exposed to hair loss content on social media, hair loss content was most often created by influencers (56%), followed by board-certified dermatologists (35%) and non-dermatologist skincare professionals (30%), with 19% unsure of the content creator. Nearly one quarter of respondents rarely or never questioned the accuracy of hair loss-related information seen on social media, and 42% reported experiencing side effects associated with these products.
• Overall, 60% of the respondents reported ever using at least one DTC treatment for hair loss, although only 30% were current users. Perceived effectiveness varied widely, with 45% reporting none were effective and 14% reporting all were effective, with no single product consistently rated effective by respondents. The most common treatments included essential oils (62%), shampoos or conditioners for thinning hair (59%), scalp massage (38%), and biotin (38%).

IN PRACTICE:

“Many patients and families turn to social media and DTC products in search of information or solutions for hair loss, often without consistent benefit and sometimes with adverse effects,” the authors of the study concluded. “Clinicians should routinely ask about these behaviors, provide clear, evidence-based guidance, and help set realistic expectations,” they wrote, adding that dermatologists “have an opportunity to use these platforms to disseminate accurate content and empower families to critically evaluate what they encounter online.”

SOURCE:

The study was led by Sarah Lee, Harvard Medical School, Boston, and was published online on April 29 in Pediatric Dermatology.

LIMITATIONS:

Study limitations included a single-center design, a modest sample size, self-reported data, and heterogeneous alopecia diagnoses, which could have influenced treatment patterns and experiences across different conditions.

DISCLOSURES:

The authors did not report any funding source or conflict of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.