Arq Bras Cardiol: Imagem cardiovasc. 2024; 37(4): e20240109

The Use of X (Formerly Twitter) in Cardiovascular Imaging: Opportunities and Risks

Alex dos Santos

Felix

DOI: 10.36660/abcimg.20240109i

Introduction

Social media has decisively transformed the way we disseminate medical information and knowledge, launching new digital tools to boost scientific debate and help redesign healthcare education. Globally, X, formerly Twitter, stands out in the medical field as a more scientific platform, with great interaction between peers, helping doctors and other healthcare professionals from all continents connect to discuss publications, debate scientific evidence, and share clinical experiences. X is also highly important as a channel for the dissemination of scientific events, courses and conferences. In a recent study involving healthcare professionals from 35 countries, Guerra et al. identified that X was the second most accessed social network (55.1%), second only to LinkedIn (60.8%). The speed of dissemination of information and interactivity are strong points of X, with the possibility of bringing together younger doctors, or those who work in institutions with lower complexity, with renowned professionals who work in large centers around the world. This valuable exchange of experiences creates a large virtual “grand round,” bringing other professionals into the debate and allowing for the discussion of controversial technical concepts and challenging clinical cases.

X was founded in 2006, still as Twitter, as an environment for the exchange of short messages, initially limited to 140 characters, having been extended to 280 characters in 2017, and recently relaxed to 25,000 characters for Premium users only. According to the Digital Report 2024, Brazil is the second country in the world where users spend the most time online. There are 245 million users on X, with more than 500 million posts per day, making Brazil the fourth largest user base of this platform in the world.

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