Self-medication is defined as obtaining and consuming medication without professional supervision, which includes acquiring drugs without a prescription, purchasing drugs by resubmitting or reutilizing an old prescription, taking medicines on advice of relatives or friends and consuming left-over medicines already available at home.

A total of 350 subjects belonging to different age groups were surveyed, based on a questionnaire that was devised for analyzing self medication of antibiotics. Out of 350, 300 resorted to self-medication of antibiotics, of which 178 suffered from minor adverse reactions like abdominal cramps and rashes. Also 149 terminated the antibiotic course once the symptoms subsided. Majority of the subjects were unaware of antibiotic resistance due to non-conformance and considered self-medication an acceptable practice.

The study thus proved that a strong awareness needs to be created amongst consumers about the adverse effects of self-medication and strict regulations must be followed during the retail sale of drugs.

Tags: MET Institute of Pharmacy