Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37682967›Full record

ArticlePloS one2023

Are digital social media campaigns the key to raise stroke awareness in low-and middle-income countries? A study of feasibility and cost-effectiveness in Nepal.

Christine Tunkl, Raju Paudel, Lekhjung Thapa, Patrick Tunkl, Pankaj Jalan, Avinash Chandra, Sarah Belson, Bikram Prasad Gajurel, Nima Haji-Begli, Sunanjay Bajaj and 4 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Exploring the Feasibility of a Social Media Intervention for Nepali Menstruators.Women's reproductive health (Philadelphia, Pa.) · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Examining Stroke Symptom Messages Implemented Globally: A Need for Contextually Relevant Stroke Symptom Messaging.Journal of nursing scholarship : an official publication of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing · 2026
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Prehospital stroke care in low- and middle-income countries: A World Stroke Organization (WSO) scientific statement.International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society · 2025
    Review
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Christine TunklDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-7305-0402
Raju PaudelGrande International Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Lekhjung ThapaNational Neuro Center, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Patrick TunklTunkl Consulting, Heidelberg, Germany.
Pankaj JalanNorvic International Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Avinash ChandraAnnapurna Neurological Institute, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Sarah BelsonWorld Stroke Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.
Bikram Prasad GajurelTribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Nima Haji-BegliDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Sunanjay BajajDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-7660-3607
Jessica GoleniaDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Wolfgang WickDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Werner HackeDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Christoph GumbingerDepartment of Neurology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundStroke is a major global health problem and was the second leading cause of death worldwide in 2020. However, the lack of public stroke awareness especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) such as Nepal severely hinders the effective provision of stroke care. Efficient and cost-effective strategies to raise stroke awareness in LMICs are still lacking. This study aims to (a) explore the feasibility of a social media-based stroke awareness campaign in Nepal using a cost-benefit analysis and (b) identify best practices for social media health education campaigns.

methodsWe performed a stroke awareness campaign over a period of 6 months as part of a Stroke Project in Nepal on four social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok) with organic traffic and paid advertisements. Adapted material based on the World Stroke Day Campaign and specifically created videos for TikTok were used. Performance of the campaign was analyzed with established quantitative social media metrics (impressions, reach, engagement, costs).

resultsCampaign posts were displayed 7.5 million times to users in Nepal. 2.5 million individual social media users in Nepal were exposed to the campaign on average three times, which equals 8.6% of Nepal's total population. Of those, 250,000 users actively engaged with the posts. Paid advertisement on Facebook and Instagram proved to be more effective in terms of reach and cost than organic traffic. The total campaign cost was low with a "Cost to reach 1,000 users" of 0.24 EUR and a "Cost Per Click" of 0.01 EUR. DISCUSSION: Social media-based campaigns using paid advertisement provide a feasible and, compared to classical mass medias, a very cost-effective approach to inform large parts of the population about stroke awareness in LMICs. Future research needs to further analyze the impact of social media campaigns on stroke knowledge.

Indexed as

Social MediaStrokeCost-Benefit AnalysisDeveloping CountriesFeasibility StudiesHumansNepal

Identifiers

PMID37682967
PMCPMC10490866

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.