ObjectiveAdolescents are known to be high users of social media, and social media is
beginning to be used in health care. The primary objective of this review
was to determine the current state of play on the use of social media as a
health intervention in addressing the health of adolescents.MethodsSix databases were searched: CINAHL, Medline, Scopus, ProQuest, Psych Info
and Science Direct, from 2000–2013. The review process followed PRISMA
guidelines with quality assessments of the selected articles undertaken.ResultsThree studies used social media as a health intervention in adolescent
health. Facebook was the social media of choice. The way this social media
tool was incorporated as the intervention varied. None of the social media
interventions had a significant or sustained impact on the primary outcomes
of the studies reviewed. Measures of social media process were limited and
lacked meaning.ConclusionsThe selected papers provided insight into the beginning phase of using social
media as a health intervention to address adolescent health. The review
highlights three important areas for consideration when undertaking research
on the use of social media as a health intervention for adolescents: the
newness of using social media as a health intervention, the importance of
the use of rigorous methodological processes when using social media as a
health intervention, and the need to develop further knowledge on
adolescents’ use of social media, in particular their hidden world of social
media.