| Title |
Evaluating Social Media Networks in Medicines Safety Surveillance: Two Case Studies
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Drug Safety, August 2015
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s40264-015-0333-5 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Preciosa M. Coloma, Benedikt Becker, Miriam C. J. M. Sturkenboom, Erik M. van Mulligen, Jan A. Kors |
| Abstract |
There is growing interest in whether social media can capture patient-generated information relevant for medicines safety surveillance that cannot be found in traditional sources. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential contribution of mining social media networks for medicines safety surveillance using the following associations as case studies: (1) rosiglitazone and cardiovascular events (i.e. stroke and myocardial infarction); and (2) human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine and infertility. We collected publicly accessible, English-language posts on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter until September 2014. Data were queried for co-occurrence of keywords related to the drug/vaccine and event of interest within a post. Messages were analysed with respect to geographical distribution, context, linking to other web content, and author's assertion regarding the supposed association. A total of 2537 posts related to rosiglitazone/cardiovascular events and 2236 posts related to HPV vaccine/infertility were retrieved, with the majority of posts representing data from Twitter (98 and 85 %, respectively) and originating from users in the US. Approximately 21 % of rosiglitazone-related posts and 84 % of HPV vaccine-related posts referenced other web pages, mostly news items, law firms' websites, or blogs. Assertion analysis predominantly showed affirmation of the association of rosiglitazone/cardiovascular events (72 %; n = 1821) and of HPV vaccine/infertility (79 %; n = 1758). Only ten posts described personal accounts of rosiglitazone/cardiovascular adverse event experiences, and nine posts described HPV vaccine problems related to infertility. Publicly available data from the considered social media networks were sparse and largely untrackable for the purpose of providing early clues of safety concerns regarding the prespecified case studies. Further research investigating other case studies and exploring other social media platforms are necessary to further characterise the usefulness of social media for safety surveillance. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 8 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 2 | 25% |
| Spain | 1 | 13% |
| El Salvador | 1 | 13% |
| United States | 1 | 13% |
| France | 1 | 13% |
| Unknown | 2 | 25% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 4 | 50% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 4 | 50% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 96 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 2 | 2% |
| Japan | 1 | 1% |
| Colombia | 1 | 1% |
| Canada | 1 | 1% |
| Unknown | 91 | 95% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Master | 21 | 22% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 19 | 20% |
| Researcher | 11 | 11% |
| Student > Postgraduate | 7 | 7% |
| Student > Bachelor | 6 | 6% |
| Other | 17 | 18% |
| Unknown | 15 | 16% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Medicine and Dentistry | 18 | 19% |
| Computer Science | 14 | 15% |
| Social Sciences | 11 | 11% |
| Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science | 9 | 9% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 8 | 8% |
| Other | 18 | 19% |
| Unknown | 18 | 19% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 4. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 27 September 2015.
All research outputs
#6,796,125
of 22,821,814 outputs
Outputs from Drug Safety
#726
of 1,697 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#78,540
of 264,147 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Drug Safety
#14
of 23 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 22,821,814 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 69th percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,697 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 10.7. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 56% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 264,147 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 69% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 23 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 39th percentile – i.e., 39% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.