Research Article
Department of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery in the Era of Social Media
Jinglan Yang,
Xuguang Li,
Qiubi Tang,
Xiang Wu,
Xiaomei Chen,
Chunqun Li*
Issue:
Volume 14, Issue 4, August 2026
Pages:
66-75
Received:
21 July 2026
Accepted:
30 July 2026
Published:
6 August 2026
DOI:
10.11648/j.js.20261404.11
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Abstract: Metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) is an effective treatment for obesity and associated metabolic disease, while social media has become an important environment in which patients encounter information, professional communication, peer experience, and commercial promotion. This narrative review examined the opportunities, risks, and governance implications of social media in MBS. Peer-reviewed literature was primarily identified through targeted searches of PubMed and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), supplemented by relevant professional, regulatory, and platform documents obtained from official sources. Publications were selected purposively according to their conceptual and clinical relevance and were synthesized thematically around information quality, patient decision-making, professional communication, social support, stigma, privacy, and regulation. Social media can expand access to health information, facilitate clinician-patient communication, and strengthen peer support; however, available evidence does not support treating social media exposure as a deterministic cause of health behavior. Its influence varies according to platform design, source credibility, health and digital literacy, demographic and cultural context, offline relationships, and access to clinical care. Important risks include misinformation, selective presentation of favorable outcomes, commercially driven promotion, weight stigma, and privacy breaches. MBS-specific governance should require credential verification, disclosure of commercial interests, balanced communication of benefits, risks, alternatives, and long-term follow-up requirements, and robust consent procedures for patient-related content. Future studies should evaluate causal pathways, population differences, and professionally led social media interventions.
Abstract: Metabolic and bariatric surgery (MBS) is an effective treatment for obesity and associated metabolic disease, while social media has become an important environment in which patients encounter information, professional communication, peer experience, and commercial promotion. This narrative review examined the opportunities, risks, and governance i...
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