A dubious fashion trend has emerged, and it involves wearing a hospital gown...

It all seems to have stemmed from one TikTok user posting up a video featuring a dress resembling a medical garment. Photo: AFP

While trends like transparency, Bermuda shorts and fringing have become increasingly popular, no one expected to see the hospital gown join the list of this season's must-haves.

And yet, you could be seeing the garment – or its lookalikes – on the beach in the next few weeks.

It's a "trend" that emerged on social networks, almost as a misunderstanding, and has been gaining ground steadily over the last few days.

The phenomenon has reached such proportions that the hashtag #hospitalgown has now racked up over 35 million views on the Chinese social network TikTok. That's quite something for an outfit that patients – real patients – usually dread wearing: it's not glamorous, and is inevitably associated with illness.

It all started with a video posted by one TikTok user (@izzyfreee), over which she writes: "Some outfits just make me feel like that b***h. This, my friend, is the perfect example."

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She can be seen showing off an outfit similar in cut and pattern to the one given to patients when they arrive at the hospital. The famous opening in the back, which patients dread, is even featured on this dress, which resembles a hospital gown in every way.

And that's all it took for the trend to take off, elevating this medical garment to the status of summer must-have. Well, almost...

Although the video has been viewed more than four million times, the outfit has been mocked and criticised more than anything else.

All about the unusual

It should be pointed out, however, that the content creator in question was not at the hospital when she made her video – nor did she steal a gown reserved for patients.

In fact – and she explains this in the caption – it was a dress offered for sale by a well-known ready-to-wear brand in the US.

A quick internet search is all it takes to find this outfit under the name "Organic Cotton Romper Chambray Combo".

However, it is not available on the Free People website, but on resale sites such as eBay, and is now gaining something of a following on the Chinese social network.

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Nicole Story Dent, followed by some 500,000 users on TikTok, ponders in a video: "Why would a store sell a hospital gown for US$68 (approximately RM320)? And better yet, who would buy it?"

And it's a legitimate question, given the primary function of the garment.

But the TikTok user continues as she shows off her outfit: "And the answer to that question is me."

Of course, it's impossible for this trend to gain enough momentum to see women in hospital gowns parading down the street, but the viral nature of this dress shows that, in the age of social networking, the more unlikely a fashion inspiration seems, the more likely it is to be talked about online. – AFP Relaxnews