Display options
Cite
Albusalih FA, Naqvi AA, Ahmad R, et al. Prevalence of Self-Medication among Students of Pharmacy and Medicine Colleges of a Public Sector University in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia. Pharmacy (Basel). 2017;5(3)doi: 10.3390/pharmacy5030051.
Albusalih, F. A., Naqvi, A. A., Ahmad, R., & Ahmad, N. (2017). Prevalence of Self-Medication among Students of Pharmacy and Medicine Colleges of a Public Sector University in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia. Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland), 5(3), . https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy5030051
Albusalih, Fatimah Ali, et al. "Prevalence of Self-Medication among Students of Pharmacy and Medicine Colleges of a Public Sector University in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia." Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) vol. 5,3 (2017). doi: https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmacy5030051
Albusalih FA, Naqvi AA, Ahmad R, Ahmad N. Prevalence of Self-Medication among Students of Pharmacy and Medicine Colleges of a Public Sector University in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia. Pharmacy (Basel). 2017 Sep 04;5(3). doi: 10.3390/pharmacy5030051. PMID: 28970463; PMCID: PMC5622363.
Copy Download .nbib Format: NLM
Share it on

Pharmacy (Basel). 2017 Sep 04;5(3). doi: 10.3390/pharmacy5030051.

Prevalence of Self-Medication among Students of Pharmacy and Medicine Colleges of a Public Sector University in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia.

Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland)

Fatimah Ali Albusalih, Atta Abbas Naqvi, Rizwan Ahmad, Niyaz Ahmad

Affiliations

  1. College of Clinical Pharmacy, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (University of Dammam), Dammam 31441, Saudi Arabia. [email protected].
  2. Department of Pharmacy Practice, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (University of Dammam), Dammam 31441, Saudi Arabia. [email protected].
  3. Natural Products and Alternative Medicines, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (University of Dammam), Dammam 31441, Saudi Arabia. [email protected].
  4. Department of Pharmaceutics, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (University of Dammam), Dammam 31441, Saudi Arabia. [email protected].

PMID: 28970463 PMCID: PMC5622363 DOI: 10.3390/pharmacy5030051

Abstract

Pharmacy and medical students are expected to be more knowledgeable regarding rational use of medications as compared to the general public. A cross-sectional study was conducted among students of pharmacy and medicine colleges of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University in Dammam, Saudi Arabia using a survey questionnaire. The duration of the study was six months. The aim was to report self-medication prevalence of prescription and non-prescription drugs among pharmacy and medical students. The prevalence of self-medication in the pharmacy college was reported at 19.61%. Prevalence of self-medication at the medical college was documented at 49.3%. The prevalence of multivitamin use was reported at 30.53%, analgesics; 72.35%, antihistamines; 39.16%, and antibiotic use at 16.59%. The prevalence of anti-diarrheal medicines and antacids use among students was found to be 8.63% and 6.64%, respectively. The variable of college and study year was statistically associated with the nature of the medicines. The most common justifications given by students indulging in self-medication were 'mild problems' and 'previous experience with medicines'. Our study reported that prevalence of self-medication in the College of Clinical Pharmacy was low, i.e., 19.61%. The figure has been reported for the first time. Students were mostly observed self-medicating with OTC drugs, however, some reported using corticosteroids and isotretenoin, which are quite dangerous if self-medicated. Students have a positive outlook towards pharmacists as drug information experts.

Keywords: Saudi Arabia; epidemiology; medical students; pharmacy students; prevalence; self-medication

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

References

  1. J Clin Diagn Res. 2016 Sep;10 (9):JC05-JC09 - PubMed
  2. Pak J Med Sci. 2015 Jan-Feb;31(1):14-8 - PubMed
  3. Saudi Pharm J. 2014 Apr;22(2):107-12 - PubMed
  4. Curr Drug Saf. 2010 Oct;5(4):315-23 - PubMed
  5. J Young Pharm. 2010 Jul;2(3):306-10 - PubMed
  6. Subst Abuse Treat Prev Policy. 2010 Jan 22;5:2 - PubMed
  7. Biomed Res Int. 2015;2015:580650 - PubMed
  8. Saudi Med J. 2015 Mar;36(3):328-34 - PubMed

Publication Types