Surg Cosmet Dermatol. 2026;18(2):1-7
BACKGROUND: TikTok is a short-video platform popular among the young, the age group most affected by acne. Health-related content is often produced by creators without academic backgrounds in health care, raising concerns about information quality and reliability.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the educational quality, reliability, and evidence-based accuracy of TikTok videos on acne treatment in Brazilian Portuguese.
METHODS: The top 30 videos for “tratamento da acne” (acne treatment) were selected using a new TikTok account. Educational quality was assessed using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool for Audiovisual Materials (PEMAT-A/V), accuracy using the 2024 American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) Guidelines of Care for the Management of Acne Vulgaris, and reliability using the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Benchmark Criteria.
RESULTS: Only 10% of videos recommended treatments consistent with AAD guidelines. No non-medical creator provided correct recommendations, and only 33% of physician-created videos were correct. PEMAT-A/V scores were high, indicating well edited and understandable content, whereas JAMA scores were uniformly low, reflecting poor reliability..
CONCLUSIONS:Caution is warranted when using TikTok as a source of information on acne treatment in Brazilian Portuguese, as most videos analyzed were incorrect or imprecise.
Keywords: Acne Vulgaris; Cross-sectional studies; Social Media; Health Communication
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