Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet

The use of social media in public health education has been increasing due to its ability to remove physical barriers that traditionally impede access to healthcare support and resources. As health promotion becomes more deeply rooted in Internet-based programming, health education specialists are tasked with becoming more competent in computer-mediated contexts that optimize both online and offline consumer health experiences. Generating a better understanding of the benefits and drawbacks to using social media in the field is important, since health education specialists continue to weigh its advantages against potential concerns and barriers to use. Accordingly, this Special Issue aims to explore social media as a translational health promotion tool by bridging principles of health education and health communication that examine (1) the method with which social media users access, negotiate, and create health information that is both actionable and impactful for diverse audiences; (2) strategies for overcoming challenges to using social media in health promotion; and (3) best practices for designing, implementing, and evaluating social media forums in public health. In this commentary, we discuss the updated communication and advocacy roles and responsibilities of health education specialists in the context of social media research and practice.

Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet #Preprint #PeerReviewMe: Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint. Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn. Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period. Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author). Background: Despite the relatively high prevalence of low health literacy among individuals living with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), limited empirical attention has been paid to the cognitive and health-literacy-related skills that can uniquely influence patients’ health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcomes. Objective: To examine how health literacy, eHealth literacy, and COPD knowledge are associated with both generic and lung-specific HRQoL in people living with COPD. Methods: Adults from the COPD Foundation’s National Research Registry (N = 174) completed a cross-sectional web-based survey that assessed socio-demographic characteristics, comorbidity status, COPD knowledge, health literacy, eHealth literacy, and generic HRQoL. Hierarchical linear regression models were tested to examine the roles of health literacy and eHealth literacy on generic (Model 1) and lung-specific (Model 2) HRQoL, after accounting for socioeconomic and comorbidity covariates. Spearman rank correlations examined associations between ordinal HRQoL items and statistically significant hierarchical predictor variables. Results: Health literacy, eHealth literacy and COPD knowledge accounted for 9% of variance in generic HRQoL (Adj. R2=21%), F(9, 164) = 6.09, P<.001. After adjusting for potentially confounding factors, health literacy (b = .08, SE = .02, 95% CI = [0.04, 0.12]) was the only predictor positively associated with generic HRQoL (P < .001). Higher health literacy scores were significantly (P < .05) associated with better scores on all five generic HRQoL dimensions. Adding health literacy, eHealth literacy and COPD knowledge as predictors explained an additional 7.40% of variance in lung-specific HRQoL (Adj. R2=26.40%), F(8, 161) = 8.59, P < .001). After adjusting for covariates, both health literacy (b = 2.63, SE = .84, 95% CI = [.96, 4.29], P < .001) and eHealth literacy (b = 1.41, SE = .67, 95% CI = [.09, 2.73], P < .001) were positively associated with lung-specific HRQoL. Health literacy was associated with better scores quantifying the impact of most lung-specific HRQoL indicators (i.e., cough frequency, chest tightness, activity limitation at home, confidence leaving home, sleep quality, and energy level). eHealth literacy was positively associated with 5 of 8 (60%) lung-specific HRQoL indicators. After adjusting for confounding variables, COPD knowledge (b = -.56, SE = .29, 95% CI = [-1.22, -.004], P < .05) was inversely associated with lung-specific HRQoL. Conclusions: Health literacy, but not eHealth literacy, was positively associated with generic HRQoL. However, both health literacy and eHealth literacy were positively associated with lung-specific HRQoL, with higher COPD knowledge indicative of lower lung-specific HRQoL. Results confirm the importance of considering both health and eHealth literacy levels when designing patient education and self-management support programs for people living with COPD. Future research should explore the impact of delivering interventions aimed at improving eHealth and health literacy among COPD patients, particularly when overarching intervention goals are to enhance HRQoL.

Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet

Background: College students actively seek online health information and use Instagram, an image- and video-based social networking website, to build social networks grounded in trust and behavioral norms (social capital), which have the potential to prevent chronic disease. Purpose: This study aimed to (1) examine how intensity of Instagram use moderates the relationship between eHealth Literacy and online social capital in college students and (2) discuss how Instagram can be used as a social awareness platform for chronic disease prevention among college students. Methods: Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to analyze web-based survey data from a random sample of college students (N = 327). Results: Online bridging social capital was associated with greater ehealth literacy (P < .05) and intensity of Instagram use (P < .001), when controlling for sociodemographic variables. The relationship between ehealth literacy and online bridging social capital was strongest among respondents with average-intensity (P < .01) and high-intensity (P < .01) Instagram use compared to low Instagram intensity. Discussion: High intensity of Instagram use may strengthen college students’ low ehealth literacy, especially when interacting with heterogeneous connections with weaker ties. Translation to Health Education Practice: Health Education Specialists should continue to explore how college students’ intensity of Instagram use can be strengthened to build bridging online social capital and ultimately prevent chronic disease.

Pubic lice (Pthirus pubis) maintain a worldwide parasitic population infesting two to over 10 percent of human populations, continuing a presence that has been constant since early evidence 10,000 years ago. Outbreaks in the 1970s have been recorded, but incomplete records preclude description of a definitive population cycle. Current levels of infestation in a US college student population were investigated in this study. Knowledge and opinions of students were also recorded in an online survey administered to college students taking a basic health course at a mid-sized East Coast University. In a group of 817 students, 35 reported experience with pubic lice or other STD infection. Knowledge, beliefs, and treatment attitudes were examined for the 782 students who did not have experience with either pubic lice or STD infection. These students deemed antibiotics as a viable treatment for pubic lice infestation. They also indicated negative attitudes toward the use of pesticide crèmes, which are the most useful prescription. Symptoms and transmission myths in student answers are described.