Two in five U.S. consumers - or 42 percent - say they have used social media to view health-related consumer reviews about treatments, physicians, and medical facilities, according to a PwC Health Research Institute survey. In addition, 41 percent of U.S. consumers say information they find on social networks would affect their decision to choose a hospital or doctor.

Ninety percent of respondents from 18 to 24 years of age said they would trust medical information shared by others in their social media networks. This age demographic were also the most apt to share their own personal medical information online; 80 percent said they would, compared to less than half of the older 45- to 65-year-old survey participants.