Pattern Of Self-medication Practice Research Articles

Self-Medication Practice During Covid-19 Among Medical Field Students at Umm Alqura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia: Cross-Sectional Survey

Self-medication is prevalent practice that described as administration of one or more medications in order to treatself-diagnosed or self- recognized diseases or symptoms without the supervision of physician or pharmacist. The world is currentlystruggling with the COVID-19 pandemic, which makes the prevalence of self-medication practice evident with the ongoingpandemic. Our study aimed to assess the prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices among medical field students. Also,to determine the most common reasons, symptoms, and medications associated with self-medication practice. A descriptive crosssectionalstudy was conducted on 561 medical field students at Umm Al-Qura University to assess the prevalence, attitudes, andpractice of self-medication. A web-based questionnaire was conducted to collect their demographic, socioeconomic status, andhealth-related information. More precisely, Self-medication practice during COVID-19. Two-thirds of the students in the medicalsector self-medicated, and almost half of them reported doing so more frequently during the pandemic, according to the research.Pain and flu-like symptoms were the most often reported symptoms leading to self-medication. As a result, the students utilisedanalgesics and anti-flu drugs most frequently during this time. The report emphasises how common self-medication is among UmmAl-Qura University students studying medicine. These students must, however, grasp the boundaries of self-medication and whenit is important to seek professional medical guidance. Medical students may have a strong foundation in medicine, but registeredor licensed, trained and skilled healthcare professionals are still required for accurate diagnosis and successful treatment.Therefore, promoting awareness and providing education on responsible medication use is essential to ensure the well-being andsafety of medical students during the COVID-19 pandemicand beyond.Keywords: ; ; ; ,

Prevalence and pattern of self-medication among undergraduate students: A comparative study between medical and pharmacy students

Background: Self-medication is quite a prevalent public health problem. It can cause serious harm to the person, like adverse drug reactions, toxicity, drug resistance, incomplete cure, drug dependence, etc. Self-medication is associated with incorrect self-diagnosis and inadequate treatment, which can result in disease progression and complications. The primary purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude, and pattern of self-medication practice among undergraduate medical and pharmacy students. Methodology: A questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted in the College of Medicine and College of Pharmacy. The pre-tested, structured questionnaire was used. All medical and pharmacy students were invited to participate in the study by filling in an online study questionnaire. The study questionnaire consists of three parts. The first part includes personal and health status. The second part is related to the past year’s most frequent conditions participants had self-medication. Participants were also asked about their self-medication knowledge and perception. An electronic survey link was sent out via email. Statistical analysis was performed in SPSS 25 software. Results: Self-Medication is more prevalent among medical students (70.59 %) than among pharmacy students (62.3%). The most important condition was a cough, 83% among medical students and 67% of pharmacy students, and a sore throat, 47.1% of medical students and 44.2% of pharmacy students. The most frequent medication used among medical and pharmacy students was analgesic (paracetamol and NSAIDS). Antibiotics (41% medical and 33% pharmacy students) and Vitamin supplements were next utilized. Pharmacy students used more supplements than medical Students (33.8 percent pharmacy versus 13% medical) Conclusion: Self-medication has been found to be very common among medical and pharmacy students in Oman. The student-ts need to be educated about the harms of self-medication and the responsible use of medicine.

PREVALENCE AND PATTERN OF SELF MEDICATION AMONG HEALTHCARE WORKERS IN A TERTIARY HOSPITAL IN NORTHEAST NIGERIA

Self-medication is common among health care professionals due to their professional exposure to drugs and knowledge of treatment of their disease. This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence and pattern of self-medication practice among healthcare workers in a tertiary health facility in Northeast Nigeria. It was a descriptive cross-sectional study. Stratified sampling technique was employed to select eligible participants from the groups of various healthcare professionals. Thereafter simple probability sampling by balloting was used to select the required number of from for each stratum of healthcare workers. A self-administered semi-structured pretested questionnaire was used to gather the necessary information. Data was analysed using SPSS version 20. The mean age of the respondents was 33.1 ± 2.3 years. The prevalence of self-medication was found to be high at 84.6%. The largest group of the healthcare workers practising self-medication were the allied health workers 37.5% comprising Pharmacists, Laboratory Scientists, and Health Record Personnel. The commonest reason given for self-medicating was being familiar with treatment options for their medical conditions 45.5%. Analgesics were the most common medications taken as self-medication, 68.2%. Among the respondents who engage in self-medication, 6.3% had experienced side effects, of which the commonest side effect was acute exacerbation of peptic ulcer disease 46.1%. Conclusion: There was high prevalence of self-medication among the healthcare workers. Familiarization with treatment options for medical conditions accounted for most reason why the respondents self-medicate.

Prevalence and Patterns of Self-Medication Practices In Urban Field Practice Area, Dharwad

Background: The estimated prevalence of self-medication practices globally and nationally are 95% and 71% respectively. Inappropriate self-medication leads to irrational use of drugs and development of drug resistance. Hence, the present study was conducted to estimate the prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in urban field practice area, SDMCMS&H, Dharwad.
 Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during 2018-2019 among adult aged 18-60 years. The estimated sample size was 335. Systematic random sampling technique was used to select the samples. Data was collected by administering questionnaire to the consented study participants.
 Results: A total of 335 adults participated in our study. The prevalence of self-medication practices was 46%. Minor-illness 89(57.7%) and quick relief 50(32.46%) were the major reasons given for practicing self-medication. Fever and headache 146(94.8%) was the most common symptom and analgesic 128(83.11%) was the most common drug used. significant association was found between self-medication practices and religion, age, employment and presence of health care workers in the family.
 Conclusion: Around half of the study participants practiced self-medication. Easy availability and limited knowledge are the reasons for wide range of practice. Creating awareness about dangers of self-medication is important to prevent untoward effects and drug resistance.

COMMUNITY-BASED STUDY ON PREVALENCE AND PATTERN OF SELF-MEDICATION PRACTICES AND ITS ASSOCIATED FACTORS IN S.S LAYOUT, DAVANGERE

Objectives: Self-medication practice is an element of self-care and it is the use of medication without the prescription of health-care professionals. This community-based prospective observational study was undertaken with the aim to evaluate the prevalence and pattern of self-medication practices and to assess the knowledge, attitude, and belief of the subjects toward this practice.
 Methods: This study was carried out in S.S Layout, Davangere, for a period of 6 months. The data were collected in predesigned validated questionnaire. A total of 400 subjects were participated in the study.
 Results: Among 400 individuals, 280 subjects were practicing self-medication, and this practices were high among females 174 (62%) than males 106 (38%). The majority of subjects participated in this study were students (36%). The most common indications for self-medication practice were headache (30%) followed by fever (25%) and heartburn (13%). The highly used drug in this practice was acetaminophen (57%). The most commonly used category of drugs for self-medication were analgesics (57%) followed by antacids (17%) and others (anti-hypertensive, anti-diarrheal, anti-pyretic, anti-histamines, and laxative) (13%). The main reasons for self-medication practice were no need to visit the doctor for minor illness (62%), long distance to health center (24%), and inability to pay for health-care cost (6%).
 Conclusion: This study shows that self-medication is widely practiced among students in our society. There is dire need to make them aware about the pros and cons of self-medication in order to ensure safe usage of drugs. Interventions are required to reduce the frequency of misuse of drugs.

Ophthalmology Self-medication Practices: A Questionnaire-based Study

ABSTRACT Purpose: The aim of the study was to identify patterns of self-medication practices in ophthalmology. Methods: We conducted an electronic cross-sectional descriptive survey of the Riyadh regional population in Saudi Arabia. Results: The study included 1354 subjects; 662 were males (49%), and 692 were females (51%). The rate of self-medication with prescription drugs (topical antibiotics and steroid-containing eye drops) in our sample was 37.2%. The number of respondents who reported using eye drops, whether it was an over-the-counter drug or a prescription drug, was 733 (54.1%). The most frequently used ophthalmic medications after lubrication drops were steroid-containing eye drops (32.6%), followed by topical decongestants (11%) and antibiotics (4.6%). The majority of steroid users (86.6%) were not aware of any steroid-related ocular complications. Conclusion: Our study showed a high rate of self-medication practices along with a low level of awareness of topical medication-related side effects. If left unaddressed, this combination may result in high rates of preventable and avoidable adverse events.

Knowledge, attitudes and practice of self-medication among university students in Portugal: A cross-sectional study.

Aims:To describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices of self-medication in college students and to analyse the predicting factors for the engagement in that behaviour.Design:This is a cross-sectional study involving students (n = 840) from a Portuguese university, selected through stratified and proportional sampling. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire containing, in addition to sociodemographic issues, a scale measuring knowledge about self-medication (α = .488), a scale measuring attitudes towards self-medication (α = .708) and questions about the patterns of self-medication practices (α = .445). Differences between outcomes and sociodemographics were analysed through independent t-tests and ANOVA. A generalised linear model was calculated to determine the predictive variables of self-medication.Results:Over half of the respondents ( 54.3%, n = 434) had used some form of self-medication during the preceding year. Students revealed poor knowledge about the referred practice, correctly answering 1.60 (SD = 0.936) questions in a total of 3, and favourable attitudes towards self-medication (M = 2.17, SD = 0.950, range 1–5). Attending engineering sciences (β = .718, 95% CI: 1.373–3.069, p < .001), being female (β = .866, 95% CI: 1.700–3.327, p < .001) and having negative attitudes towards self-medication (β = .367, 95% CI: 1.227–1.698, p < .001) predict the adoption of those practices.Conclusions:Self-medication is a common practice among university students, the level of self-medication knowledge is low and the low score of the level of attitudes revealed that students tended to have a correct positioning towards self-medication. Therefore, the recommendation to develop campaigns or educational programmes becomes obvious, in order to inform about the adverse effects of the use of non-prescribed medicine.

Study on Prevalence and Pattern of Self Medication Practices in a Rural Area of Bihar

Background: Self-medication is common in most parts. It leads to adverse effects. The present study was conducted to assess the pattern of self -medication and reasons behind this practice.Subjects and Methods:The present study was community based cross-sectional in nature conducted upon 198 adults residing in the rural field practice area. Sociodemographic profile and details of self-medication were noted.Results:63.1% of the respondents were males. 35.9% of them belonged to the age group of 30-40 years. 32.8% were illiterate and 85.9% were Hindu. A total of 198 respondents practiced self-medication (51.2%). Most common symptom was headache (85.9%). Common cold (63.1%), fever (56.1% and gas (31.8%) were other common complains. Paracetamol (90.0%), pantoprazole (51%), other NSAIDs (42.9%) and cold tablets (36.9%) were other medicines used commonly. 69.2% respondents said that they were practicing it for minor illnesses, 36.9% cited economic reasons while 46% said that consulting a physician needed much time and self-medication was time saving.Conclusion: Prevalence of self-medication is high. Strict drug regulations are needed.

Practice of self-medication among the adult population in the Municipal Corporation area of Siliguri, West Bengal, India

Background: Self-medication is a major public health concern which has increased at the community level. It may lead to delay in diagnosis as well as care seeking. Present study was undertaken to find out the prevalence and pattern of self medication practices among adult population in an urban area of Siliguri Municipal Corporation area of West Bengal. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 110 adults in urban areas of Siliguri Municipal Corporation area by purposive sampling. Results: The prevalence of self-medication among urban adults was found to be 47.2%. More than 50% of the study subjects had symptoms like fever and headache for resorting medication by him. Common drugs were antipyretic or paracetamol (65.4%), antacid (50%), anti-inflammatory (44.2%) or anti-allergic (42.3%). Significant association was found between occupational status (engaged in unskilled work) and self-medication. Conclusion: Self-medication practices are a dual sword to manage time, relieve overburdened medical practice and increased resistance of pathogens due to delayed diagnosis etc. Health educational activities should be initiated to encourage common people in order to utilize health care services from government facilities which are now made at a subsidized cost.

A study of pattern of self medication practices among medical students in government medical college of Madhya Pradesh, India

Background: Self medication practice has tremendously increased in the society that leads to unwanted consequences such as drug resistance and adverse drug reactions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the self-medication practices among the second year medical students of Government Medical College, Sagar.Methods: It was a questionnaire based descriptive study. A prevalidated questionnaire were given to the second year medical students. Data were analyzed using excel sheet and result were expressed as counts and percentages.Results: Males outnumber females in this study, 40 versus 35. The most common indication for which self medication was opted was cold and cough. The most common source of information used by the respondent were text book (61.29%) and pharmacist (45.16%). The attitude was positive towards self medication and favored self-medication saying that it was acceptable. Drug groups commonly used for self-medication included analgesics 77.41% and antipyuretics 50% and anta-acids 48.38%. Among reasons for seeking self-medication, 79.03% felt that their illness was minor while 64.51% preferred as it is due to previous experience.Conclusions: This study shows that self-medication is widely practiced among second year medical students of this institution. There is intense need to make them aware about the pros and cons of self-medication in order to ensure safe usage of drugs.

The pattern of self-medication practice among undergraduate medical students of tertiary care hospital, Andhra Pradesh, India

Background: According to World Health Organization resources, Self-medication is selection and use of drugs to treat self-diagnosed disorders or symptoms which includes the usage of non-prescription drugs. It is widely seen among undergraduate students especially in developing countries like India. Our objective of the study is to know the pattern of self-medication practice among undergraduate medicos in medical college attached to tertiary care hospital.Methods: This is a Prospective, cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study conducted among 184 medical students of 5th Semester in pharmacology lecture gallery, Guntur Medical College and Hospital, A.P. India. Among 200 students of 5th semester, 184 students gave the written consent for the study and submitted the given questionnaire. Fourteen questionnaires were incomplete and so the remaining 170 were analysed.Results: Results showed that 126 (74%) respondents practiced self-medication. The main health issues for seeking self-medication were found to be upper respiratory tract infection as reported by 39 students (31%) followed by diarrhea (32 students) (25%), fever (23 students) (18%). Drugs commonly used were analgesics (32%) followed by antibiotics (24%). The reasons for practicing self-medication were mild illness for 66 students (52%) and time-saving for 35 students (28%).Conclusions: Though the self-medication practice is inevitable, drug authorities and health professionals need to educate students about the pros and cons of practicing self-medication.

Assessment of Self-Medication Practice Among Students of A Dental College of Bangalore City: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Self-medication is defined as use of medicines by the individuals on their own without professional advice to treat self-diagnosed conditions. It is prevalent not only among general population but also among doctors including dentists. Aim: To assess the pattern of self-medication practice among students of a dental college of Bangalore city. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate dental students through convenience sampling. A questionnaire consisting of 20 close-ended questions related to various aspects of self-medication practice was handed to the students. Results: Among 165 students, 68.5% of the participants were females. The most common ailments responsible for usage of self-medication were cough, cold and sore throat (22.4%) followed by headache (6.7%). Antibiotics (34.2%) and analgesics (23.9%) were the most commonly used drug groups for self-medication. Old prescription (58.2%) was found as the most common source of information for encouraging this type of practice. Conclusion: Majority of the dental students self-medicate themselves. Measures should be adopted to reduce such type of practice by guiding the students about the pros and cons of using medicines without prescription.

Self-medication practice among preclinical university students in a medical school from the city of Pokhara, Nepal.

Background: In developing countries like Nepal medicines can be acquired from the chemist's without of a prescription which sometime may have many drawbacks due to intake of excessive drugs without a proper diagnosis. The primary objective of the study was to find out the pattern of self-medication practice among the preclinical medical students at Manipal College of Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: This was a cross sectional study carried out using structured questionnaire at Manipal College of Medical Sciences, Pokhara, Nepal between November 2012- July 2014. Results: The overall response rate of this study was 95.31%. 81.35% of the students were practicing self-medication in this institution. Most common group of drugs that were consumed were antipyretics 31%, antibiotics 26.2%, analgesics 18.89%, antihistaminics 10.1% respectively. Paracetamol was the most common drug used for self-medication 31%, followed by Azithromycin 17.6% and combination of Paracetamol and Ibuprofen 15.6%, Cetirizine 8.6%, Amoxicillin 6.5%, Omeprazole 6.3%, Albendazole 3.3%, Mefenemic acid 2.8%, Cefpodoxime2% respectively. Conclusion: Medical student should be educated through awareness programme regarding pros and cons of self-medication practice and they should be motivated regarding the rationale use of antibiotics. .

Prevalence and pattern of self-medication practices among population of three districts of South Karnataka

Background: Self-medication is a general practice globally. People self-medicate by buying medicines at a medical shop either by asking its properties/symptoms such as pain killers/gastric drugs or by the advice of a qualified pharmacist/unqualified person in the medical store. This may lead to masking of severe/dangerous illness, which in turn can produce severe complications and heavy financial burden or loss of a life. Substandard drugs, improper dosage, dose intervals, lack of awareness of precautions or contraindications, and associated diseases can lead to drug interactions, drug poisoning/toxicity, and abuse of drugs. Aims and Objective: To assess the prevalence, pattern, and reasons for self-medication practices among population of three districts of South Karnataka. Materials and Methods: A preformed, pretested, and semistructured questionnaire was used to obtain the data. The questionnaire comprised questions regarding sociodemographic profile, use of self-medication, pattern of use of drugs, factors affecting their use, knowledge of the people regarding dose, duration, side effects, and interactions of the drugs in use, source of information about the drugs, and attitude toward allopathic, ayurvedic, and homeopathic medicines. The subjects were interviewed regarding the use of self-medication drugs for a recall period of 6 months duration. Statistical analysis was done using appropriate statistical method and software. Result: Of the 5,489 respondents, 4,316 (78.63%) reported self-medication within a 6-month recall period. Of these respondents, Mandya reported high self-medication practices (81.86%) when compared with Bangaloreans (72.39%). The difference was significant. Among the different age groups, high self-medication was seen in 41–60 years age group (40.48%) and low among those aged > 60 years (29.37%). The difference was significant. Self-medication was high in male (82.76%).than female subjects (72.87%). Self-medication was slightly more in rural population (79.05%) than urban respondents (78.20%). The most common conditions/symptoms for which self-medication was done was for gastric symptoms (72.10%), followed by joint pains (65.89%), headache (63.02%), fever (47.87%), and common cold (37.95%). The difference was statistically significant, with P < 0.001. Self-medication was significantly more in rural owing to nonavailability of doctors (62.01%) when compared with urban residents (38.14%). Self-medication was time-saving and, for minor illnesses, was also more in rural (64.99% and 73.78%, respectively) when compared with urban (58.82% and 68.76%, respectively) residents. The most important source of drug information for self-medication was family members and relatives (32.30%). Conclusion: The study showed the high prevalence of self-medication, and it was nearly same in both rural and urban population. Although most of the drugs self-medicated were in the list of over-the-counter drugs, but many used antimicrobial drugs, and some even got opioid analgesics as pain killers. In our study, we came to know that, on comparison, many rural female subjects were using steroids creams/ointments as fairness cream than urban female subjects. This is very dangerous, and government should have very strict guidelines for the sale of drugs for self-medication.

Prevalence and pattern of self-medication practices in an urban area of Delhi, India

Background: Self-medication is one of the major health concerns worldwide and World Health Organization has laid emphasis on correctly investigating and controlling it. There is much public and professional concern regarding self-medication practices, which has dramatically increased in the last few decades, especially in the developing countries. Hence, this study was designed to study the prevalence and practice of self-medication practices in an urban area of Delhi, India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in March 2013 and data were collected by personal interviews using pretested questionnaires. An urban colony in the south district of Delhi was chosen and the eldest member of the family, present at the time of the visit was interviewed. Data were collected from 236 persons and analyzed using SPSS version 21. Results: The prevalence of self-medication was 92.8% (95 confidence interval: 66.5-79.4). 74.9% preferred allopathic medicines. Self-medication was found to be practiced more among younger persons than older age group persons (P = 0.000). Graduates and postgraduates practiced self-medication more than others (P = 0.002). Common cold (61.6%) and fever (51.8%) were the most common ailments for which self-medication were practiced. Paracetamol and cough syrups were the most commonly used class of drugs. Conclusion: The prevalence of self-medication in this study was high. Drugs especially antimicrobials were not taken for the proper length of time. Awareness regarding self-medication practices to help patients decide on the appropriateness of self-medication is required.

Determinants of Self Medication Practices in Community of Urban Areas of Bikaner, Rajasthan

Self Medication is dened as Use of pharmaceutical or medicinal products by the consumer to treat selfrecognized disorders or symptoms, the intermittent or continued use of a medication previously prescribed by a physician for chronic or recurring disease or symptom or the use of medication recommended by lay sources or health workers not entitled to prescribe medicine. The primary objective of our study was to determine the pattern of self medication practice in the communities of urban areas of Bikaner. This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was carried out from February 2013 to July 2013 among '365' participants and it was found that self medication practice was quite prevalent (82.1%) among them. Headache, fever and cough/cold were the most common illnesses for which analgesics/antipyretics and cold remedies were found to be consumed by the subjects. The other frequently self taken medicines belonged to antispasmodic, antiallergic and antacid group. This shows that for minor illnesses people show reluctance to consult the physician and take medicines by themselves for quick relief. Chemists were found to be giving the information about medicines most commonly, however, participants do get the information about medicines from previous experiences and from relatives also. It was further observed that patients have been obtaining medicines without prescription mostly from either pharmacies or grocery shops.

SELF MEDICATION PRACTICES

Introduction: Obtaining and consuming drugs without the advice of physician either for diagnosis, prescription or surveillanceis called Self medication. Self medication has been a natural tendency of mankind at all times to relief their discomfort. Objectives: To assessthe self medication practices and the factors influencing self medication practices among the people living in Ghulam Mohammad Abad,Faisalabad. Study design: A Descriptive Cross -Sectional Study. Setting: Population of Ghulam Mohammad Abad, largest colony ofFaisalabad. Material &amp; methods: By simple random technique a sample of 369 people living in Ghulam Mohammad Abad were selected. A pre-tested questionnaire was filled by interviewing each individual. Results: Prevalence of self medication found in study group was 61.20%. Anincrease pattern of self medication practices were found in the younger age group (15-35 years) which were 64.8 %. Self medication practicewas found more in male (64.5%) as compared to female (58.5%). The unmarried persons as compared to married were involved 8% more in selfmedication. Similarly 11% increase pattern of self medication was observed amongst the respondents belonging to nuclear family (66.9%) ascompared to extended type of family status (55.9%). There were 13.60% more practices of self medication in urban population (64.2%) ascompared to rural (50.6%) and self medication was observed in illiterate (50.4%) and in matric level education (62.3%) and persons havingeducation above matric (74.4%). The prevalence of self medication was more among skilled labor (75.9%) as compared to (54.9%) in unskilledlabor. Conclusions: An increase pattern of self medication practices were found in the younger age group. As for as the gender is concerned itis more in the male as compared to female. Unmarried persons as compared to married persons were involved more in self medication. It ismore in persons belonging to nuclear family status and also more in urban population as compared to rural population. Furthermore uneducatedand respondents having education up to matric are more involve in self-medication practice. Advice of person selling medicine at medical storewere having more affect on self medication. No reason for the use of drugs and un–affordability are also the determinants of increased selfmedication.