TikTok and Black Skin: Is This a Missed Opportunity for Dermatologists?

July 2023 | Volume 22 | Issue 7 | 698 | Copyright © July 2023


Published online June 30, 2023

Janeth R. Campbell MSa, Heather Woolery-Lloyd MD FAADb, Kiyanna Williams MDc

aGeorgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC
bSkin of Color Division, Dr Phillip Frost Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL
cSkin of Color Section, Department of Dermatology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH

Abstract
Background: A study by Villa-Ruiz et al (2021) found that educational videos dominate the content of dermatologic videos on TikTok with 25.8% of the videos being posted by board-certified dermatologists. We sought to examine if these results would differ when the search is adjusted to hashtags specific to black skin. 
Methods: On October 12th, 2021, an investigator input #BlackSkinCare, #BlackSkinTreatment, #BlackSkinAdvice, and #BlackSkinCareTips in TikTok. #SkinOfColor was not searched as this term is used almost exclusively by dermatologists and could skew the results. After the total of 200 videos was obtained, the videos were then classified into categories regarding their content, and the skin concern and creator were recorded.
Results: Most of the videos were of educational content (57.1%), followed by personal experiences (23.2%). Clinical demonstrations/live procedures, business/advertisement, and entertainment/humor followed with 9.6%, 5.6%, and 4.5%, respectively. 54.5% of posts were about general skin care. 22.7% of posts addressed dark spots followed by acne (12.1%). Ingrown hair/razor bumps and skin texture/open pores followed, both with 3.5% each. 54% of videos were posted by vloggers or personal accounts. Board-certified dermatologists followed with 18.7% of the videos posted. Estheticians accounted for 16.2% and, lastly, business/industry comprised 8.6% of the videos analyzed.
Conclusions: When searching black skin, TikTok posts are mostly educational and were less likely to have been created by a board-certified dermatologist. The top skin concern specified was dark spots. These findings suggest that there is an opportunity for dermatologists to increase educational content relating to black skin on TikTok.

Campbell JR, Woolery-Lloyd H, Williams K. TikTok and black skin: is this a missed opportunity for dermatologists? J Drugs Dermatol. 2023;22(7):698-700. doi:10.36849/JDD.7061.

INTRODUCTION

The role of social media in patient education cannot be overlooked, 80% of internet users in the United States have searched online for health information.1 A recent study by Villa-Ruiz et al found that educational videos dominate the content of top dermatologic videos on TikTok. This group also reported that the majority, 48%, of those videos were posted by patients, followed by board certified dermatologists at 25.8%.2 We sought to examine if these results would differ when the search is adjusted to hashtags specific to black skin. Additionally, such results would provide board-certified dermatologists with insight into the specific skin concerns for which Black patients seek educational content on social media. Previous studies have analyzed the sources of skin of color content on other social media platforms. One study found that board-certified dermatologists only accounted for 22% of the top posts relating to skin of color on Instagram.

In this study, most of the top skin of color posts were promotional (61.6%).3 In regard to TikTok and skin of color, a recent study used hashtags generated from a list of common conditions from the skin of color website. Their search revealed that dermatologists were responsible for 20% of the content posted.4 To our knowledge, there are no studies that analyze TikTok content when searching hashtags specific to black skin.

OBJECTIVES

1. To determine what type of content is seen in the top posts on TikTok when using hashtags specific to black skin.
2. To report the top skin concerns that are discussed in TikTok videos related to black skin.
3. To determine who is posting dermatology TikTok videos related to black skin and what percentage of the posters are board-certified dermatologists.
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