Self-medication practice trend among the Brazilian elderly between 2006 and 2010: SABE Study

Self-medication among pregnant women in comparison to the general population: a scoping review of the main characteristics

Objective

An in-depth evaluation of the published evidence is needed on self-medication, specifically the evidence focusing on vulnerable groups, such as pregnant women. This scoping review aims to provide an overview of the differences in self-medication prevalence and study characteristics among different groups, while identifying gaps in the literature.

Methods

A literature search was performed in PubMed and Web of Science, including articles published in the last 10 years for the pregnant women group (PWG) and the general population group (GPG). Data on study design, self-medication prevalence, medications used, and other variables were collected, tabulated, and summarized.

Results

From 2888 screened articles, 75 were considered including 108,559 individuals. The self-medication (SM) in the PWG ranged from 2.6 to 72.4% and most studies had an SM prevalence between 21 and 50% and in the GPG, 32 from 50 studies had a SM prevalence higher than 50%. The reviewed studies varied considerably in methodology, requiring careful interpretation. While most of the studies assessed self-medication during the entire pregnancy, self-medication definition was often inconsistent between studies. Acetaminophen was the most used medication and headache was the most frequent symptom leading to self-medication initiation in the PWG.

Conclusions

Self-medication among pregnant women showed a lower prevalence when compared to the general population. The medications used and symptoms reported were similar between groups. However, methodological differences must be carefully considered. Pregnant women should carefully follow their physicians' advice before initiating self-medication to avoid preventable maternal and fetal adverse effects.

Self-medication cases reported to a poison information center in Brazil from 2014 to 2020

INTRODUCTION

Self-medication is the use of drugs to treat self-diagnosed illnesses or symptoms, on one's own initiative, without the guidance of a healthcare professional. Poison centers play an important role in understanding the relationship between self-medication and poisoning. The objective of this study is to evaluate the clinical and epidemiological profile of patients exposed to and/or poisoned by different drugs through self-medication.

METHODS

This retrospective, cross-sectional, and descriptive study analyzed data from 2014 to 2020, provided by the Toxicological Information and Assistance Center of Santa Catarina, Brazil. Data were selected, tabulated, and analyzed by using descriptive statistics and group comparison with the chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. A P value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

There were 683 cases of self-medication identified. Most patients were female (62.8 percent) and between 20 and 29 years old (26.1 percent). A toxic dose of a substance was administered in only 22.8 percent of the cases, and five deaths were recorded. The most commonly used medications were anxiolytics (18 percent), followed by analgesics and antipyretics (15.4 percent). Paracetamol was the drug used in three of the five cases that resulted in deaths.

DISCUSSION

This study demonstrates the prevalence of self-medication among women aged between 20 and 29 years old. Statistical analysis failed to show a relationship between a toxic dose and clinical manifestations. Anxiolytics, analgesics, and antipyretics are the most reported medications probably because healthcare professionals are mostly the ones who contact the center. Analgesics and antipyretics account for more than fifty percent of the deaths caused by self-medication in the present report. Some limitations such as secondary sources are related.

CONCLUSION

We highlight the importance of health professionals in promoting the rational use of medicines, as well as poison centers in assisting the population and raising their awareness regarding the issue.

Self-Medication during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil: Findings and Implications to Promote the Rational Use of Medicines

Self-medication is identified by the consumption of medications without a prescription or guidance from a qualified prescribing professional. This study estimated the prevalence, profile, and associated factors with self-medication during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. A cross-sectional study was conducted through a household survey in the Alegre city, from November to December 2021. Descriptive analysis was performed for the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of the interviewees. Poisson regression with robust variance was used to identify the association of sociodemographic and clinical variables with self-medication. A total of 654 people were interviewed, of whom 69.4% were self-medicating. The younger age group (PR = 1.13; 95% CI = 1.01-1.26), female gender (PR = 1.19; 95% CI = 1.04-1.37), consumption of alcoholic beverages (PR = 1.13; 95% CI = 1.01-1.25), and problems with adherence to pharmacological treatment (PR = 1.15; 95% CI = 1.04-1.28) were associated with self-medication, while the occurrence of polypharmacy (PR = 0.80; 95% CI = 0.68-0.95) was a protective factor for self-medication. Self-medication was directly related to over-the-counter drugs, with analgesics dipyrone and paracetamol being the most commonly used. Self-medication consumption of prescription drugs, including those under special control, was identified to a lesser extent.

Role of community pharmacy and pharmacists in self-care in Brazil

Global healthcare systems, including the National Health System in Brazil - one of the largest public models in the world -, continue to evolve, as well as populations' health needs, currently shaped on individuals feeling a greater desire to manage their own health. Self-care practices are part of several public policies and clinical guidelines in Brazil including the National Policy on Complementary and Integrative Practices, the National AIDS Control Program, the National Policy for Women's Health, and the Guidelines for Care of People with Chronic Diseases. There are over 100,700 community pharmacies, in the country (89.2% privately owned) employing 234,300 pharmacists, representing an important delivery point for self-care, as they are the first point of access to care for most patients. Self-medication is a common practice in Brazil (prevalence rates of self-medication ranging from 16.1% to 35.0%), especially with non-prescription/over-the-counter medicinal products (65.0%). In fact, these products represent over 25% of volume marketed of medicines, summing revenues of USD 1.9 billion per year. Studies demonstrated a positive budget impact as important savings for the National Health System due to reductions of unnecessary medical appointments and loss of working days. In addition to minor ailments management, other self-care services provided by community pharmacies that are frequently sought by Brazilian citizens (20-25% of cases) are smoking cessation and weight management (costs per service ranging from around USD 5.00-12.00). However, pharmacy services are not yet as fully integrated in Brazil to the same extent as in other countries. Barriers such as standardization of processes (from services' design, implementation, and evaluation in practice), pharmacist remuneration for the provision of services and the amount to be charged for the service are still a matter of controversy. For more rapid and sustainable advances in these practices, communication among various stakeholders, professional practice and healthcare regulations, standardization of services and financing of self-care (both publicly and privately) are urgently needed. This paper provides an overview of some self-care services provided by community pharmacies in Brazil and call attention to the ongoing challenges to move the National Health system forward.

Potentially inappropriate medications for the elderly: Incidence and impact on mortality in a cohort ten-year follow-up

INTRODUCTION

Pharmacological therapy plays an important role in disease control in the elderly; unfortunately, this comes with a high prevalence in the use of medications classified as potentially inappropriate.

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the incidence, risk factors, and survival of elderly people using potentially inappropriate medications (PIM).

METHOD

A ten-year follow-up assessment of elderly participants residing in a capital of Central Brazil was conducted. The initial assessment (baseline) included 418 elderly people. Data were collected through home interviews guided by a questionnaire covering socioeconomic, demographic, living conditions, and health variables. The medication information obtained comprised active ingredient, dosage, route, and regimen for the medications. The PIMs were classified according to 2019 Beers Criteria. The analyses were performed using STATA 15.0. For survival analysis, a Cox Regression was performed with the respective Kaplan Meier curve.

RESULTS

The incidence of PIM was 44.1 cases (95% CI: 35.2-54.7) per 1,000 people a year. The most used PIMs were nifedipine, glibenclamide, and sodium diclofenac. The risk factors were polypharmacy (aRR: 3.00; 95% CI: 1.31-6.88) and diabetes mellitus (aRR: 1.57; 95% CI: 1.03-2.39). We identified no statistically significant association between survival and the use of PIM.

CONCLUSION

The study highlights the high consumption of PIM among the elderly causing polypharmacy risks. Health professionals working in drug treatment need to be alert to polypharmacy risks to ensure the rational use of medications to prevent adverse reactions and other health problems.

Use of medicines by adults in primary care: Survey on health services in Minas Gerais, Brazil

INTRODUCTION

Inappropriate use and increase of health care spending reinforce the need to extend our knowledge about the quality of medication use.

OBJECTIVES

To describe and evaluate the profile of medication use in a representative sample of adult users of primary care services in the Unified Health System (SUS) of Minas Gerais.

METHOD

Cross-sectional study, with 1,159 interviewees in 104 municipalities and 253 health care services. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, health conditions and use of medicines were collected, and these variables were stratified by age group. Univariate and multivariate analyses, using logistic regression, were conducted to identify predictors of self-medication. We set a significance level of 5% for all tests.

RESULTS

The prevalence of medication use was 81.8%, with an average of 2.67 medicines per user, which increased with age. The most used drugs were losartan, hydrochlorothiazide and simvastatin, which differed between age groups. Significant self-medication was observed not only in young adults but also in the elderly. The predictors of self-medication were: being a young adult, having a higher level of education, not having chronic diseases, having worse self-perception of health and not adhering to prescription drugs. Young and elderly adults showed characteristics that made them more vulnerable in relation to the rational use of medicines.

CONCLUSION

This study can contribute to improving primary care, where it identified problems related to the extent of medication use, especially among young adults and the elderly in Minas Gerais.