IJCM_220A: Proportion of self-medication among elderly in a tertiary hospital in southern Kerala - a cross sectional study

Abstract

Background: The use of drugs, herbs, or home remedies on one’s own initiative, or on the advice of another person, without consulting a doctor. Over-the-counter availability of medicines, promotion of drugs, lack of proper awareness regarding the drug and its side effects, unheeded drug policies are all leading causes of antimicrobial resistance in today’s world. Objectives: To determine the proportion and determinants of self-medication among elderly individuals above 50 years of age visiting the district hospital in South Kerala Methodology: A hospital based cross sectional study was conducted in the inpatients above 50 years of age from the Medicine, Surgery, Pulmonology, Cardiology departments of the district hospital, Kollam. Minimum sample size was calculated to be 156 and convenience sampling was done. A semi-structured questionnaire was formulated, and data was collected in interview mode over the months of June-July 2022. Data was tabulated using MS-Excel and statistical analysis was done using SPSS software version 21. Descriptive statistics were expressed as frequencies and percentages. Chi square test was used to test any differences between proportions. Results: Among 156 participants more than half of the study participants (52.6%) with a history of self-medication described as more often (51.2%). 50% with history reported symptoms like gastritis, followed by diarrhoea, anxiety and sleep disturbances. The most commonly self-medicated drugs were Paracetamol (85.4%) followed by cetirizine (14.6%), cough syrups (12.2%) and antibiotics (9.7%) like Azithromycin and Amoxiclav Conclusion: Self-medication practices come with a lot of potential risks, like incorrect self-diagnosis, severe adverse reactions, delay in seeking medical care, incorrect choice of therapy and administration of drugs, drug interactions, masking of severe disease, dependence and abuse.