Social media's role in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery: informing clinicians, empowering patients.

With the increasing availability of the Internet in the United States, patients are more frequently seeking medical information online. Oftentimes, the medical information that patients find on traditional websites is unreliable. It is a physician's duty to ensure that patients are being educated properly. Providing sound medical information through social media websites is one way in which physicians may accomplish this goal, while also improving clinic reputation, patient volume, and doctor-patient communication.