Self-Medication Practices, Prevalence, and Associated Factors among Syrian Adult Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objectives. Self-medication (SM) means using drugs to treat self-diagnosed diseases or symptoms. Despite its important role in reducing the load on medical services, it may bear many risks. This study aims to determine the prevalence of SM and its determinants among adult inpatients of Damascus Hosp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of environmental and public health 2022, Vol.2022 (1), p.9274610
Main Authors: Abdelwahed, Rawan N. K., Jassem, Manaf, Alyousbashi, Ayham
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Analgesics
Antibiotics
Brochures
Chi-square test
Cough
Cross-Sectional Studies
Data collection
Demographics
Drugs
Headache
Hospital patients
Hospitals
Humans
Information sources
Literature reviews
Medical research
Medicine, Experimental
Patients
Prevalence
Questionnaires
Sample size
Self Medication
Self-care, Health
Signs and symptoms
Social sciences
Sociodemographics
Surveys
Surveys and Questionnaires
Syria - epidemiology
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Summary:Objectives. Self-medication (SM) means using drugs to treat self-diagnosed diseases or symptoms. Despite its important role in reducing the load on medical services, it may bear many risks. This study aims to determine the prevalence of SM and its determinants among adult inpatients of Damascus Hospital, Syria. Study design. Cross-sectional study. Methods. 453 adult inpatients were asked to complete a questionnaire through face-to-face interviews. Data were analysed using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). A chi-square test was used to detect correlation between variables. Results. Out of 453 respondents, 67.3% practiced self-medication. Most used drugs were analgesics, antipyretics, and antibiotics. The main indications for SM included headache, cough/flu, and body aches. Pharmacists were the main source of knowledge about the drugs used in SM. The leading reason for practicing SM was the mildness of the complaint. Approximately half of the participants declared they read leaflets of drugs they used in SM. In this study, SM was significantly associated with monthly income, age, and living place. Conclusions. The prevalence of SM in Damascus Hospital is high. Larger, nationwide studies are needed to identify the prevalence and determining factors of SM in Syria and to suggest the appropriate measures to control this phenomenon.
ISSN:1687-9805
1687-9813
1687-9813
DOI:10.1155/2022/9274610