Sarcouncil Journal of Medicine and Surgery

Abstract: Background: Over the past 20 years, with development of many social networking sites and the fast development of the internet around the world, many people, especially young adults, and college students turn to these platforms for a variety of reasons which include staying close with friends, entertainment, and business. Many medical clinics, especially those that are specialized in cosmetic operations and surgery used social media to market their operations and get possible customers. Objective: The Objective of this study is to assess whether the use of social media was influential in the decision-making of Iraqi undergraduate students from both sexes in undergoing these operations. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study and uses online questionnaire targeting undergraduate students around Iraq. The result showed that among the 183 participants, two-thirds of those who had surgery (69%) and nearly three-quarters of those planning to have surgery (73%) said social media was influential in their decision. Results : The results of the study were tested by Chi-squared test and a p-value of 0.000271031% (less than 5%) was obtained thus showing the results were statistically significant.ConclusionThis study concludes that viewing cosmetic surgery–related advertisement on social media, following models, and having negative self-views when viewing social media are associated with an increased likelihood of considering undergoing aesthetic operations. Future studies using a validated questionnaire that assesses the likelihood of being influenced by social media to undergo cosmetic treatments are encouraged.