Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study
<h4>Introduction</h4> The benefits of antibiotics are under threat by self-medication, which culminated in economic burdening of developing countries, treatment failures, the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria and an increased probability of exposure and infection of t...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2022-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8791537/?tool=EBI |
| _version_ | 1818715845384208384 |
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| author | Osman Kamal Osman Elmahi Reem Abdalla Elsiddig Musa Ahd Alaaeldin Hussain Shareef Mohammed Eltahier Abdalla Omer Mugahid Awad Mohamed Elmahi Randa Ahmed Abdalrheem Altamih Rayan Ibrahim Hamid Mohamed Tagwa Faisal Mohamed Alsadig |
| author_facet | Osman Kamal Osman Elmahi Reem Abdalla Elsiddig Musa Ahd Alaaeldin Hussain Shareef Mohammed Eltahier Abdalla Omer Mugahid Awad Mohamed Elmahi Randa Ahmed Abdalrheem Altamih Rayan Ibrahim Hamid Mohamed Tagwa Faisal Mohamed Alsadig |
| author_sort | Osman Kamal Osman Elmahi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Introduction</h4> The benefits of antibiotics are under threat by self-medication, which culminated in economic burdening of developing countries, treatment failures, the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria and an increased probability of exposure and infection of the general population by antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains. <h4>Objectives</h4> This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of medical students in Sudan towards the use of antibiotics, the prevalence of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudan and to identify risk factors which promote self-medication with antibiotics. <h4>Materials and methods</h4> This was a cross-sectional, descriptive and institution-based study, between November 2020 and May 2021. 1,110 medical students were selected by multistage cluster sampling. Logistic regression was used to identify risk factors of self-medication with antibiotics among the study participants. <h4>Results</h4> The median knowledge score was 7 out of a maximum of 10 (IQR: 5–8). A moderately positive attitude was observed among the participants (Median: 7/10; IQR: 6–8). Knowledge and attitude scores were significantly associated with academic year and monthly allowance (p < 0.05). 675 (60.8%) self-medicated with antibiotics within the previous 12 months, mostly from community pharmacies (321/675; 47.5%). Antibiotics were most commonly used to treat respiratory tract infections (38.1%) and cough (30.4%). Chi-square analysis demonstrated that self-medication with antibiotics was significantly associated with gender, year of study and monthly income. <h4>Conclusions</h4> Undergraduate medical students had moderate knowledge and attitude towards antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance, and an alarmingly high prevalence of self-medication with antibiotics. This highlights the urgent need for tighter legislation regarding the sales of antibiotics in community pharmacies by the state and federal health ministries. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-17T19:09:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a0e9c35ad1db42e19e7f93e0643ec48d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-17T19:09:50Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-a0e9c35ad1db42e19e7f93e0643ec48d2022-12-21T21:35:53ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032022-01-01171Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional studyOsman Kamal Osman ElmahiReem Abdalla Elsiddig MusaAhd Alaaeldin Hussain ShareefMohammed Eltahier Abdalla OmerMugahid Awad Mohamed ElmahiRanda Ahmed Abdalrheem AltamihRayan Ibrahim Hamid MohamedTagwa Faisal Mohamed Alsadig<h4>Introduction</h4> The benefits of antibiotics are under threat by self-medication, which culminated in economic burdening of developing countries, treatment failures, the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria and an increased probability of exposure and infection of the general population by antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains. <h4>Objectives</h4> This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of medical students in Sudan towards the use of antibiotics, the prevalence of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudan and to identify risk factors which promote self-medication with antibiotics. <h4>Materials and methods</h4> This was a cross-sectional, descriptive and institution-based study, between November 2020 and May 2021. 1,110 medical students were selected by multistage cluster sampling. Logistic regression was used to identify risk factors of self-medication with antibiotics among the study participants. <h4>Results</h4> The median knowledge score was 7 out of a maximum of 10 (IQR: 5–8). A moderately positive attitude was observed among the participants (Median: 7/10; IQR: 6–8). Knowledge and attitude scores were significantly associated with academic year and monthly allowance (p < 0.05). 675 (60.8%) self-medicated with antibiotics within the previous 12 months, mostly from community pharmacies (321/675; 47.5%). Antibiotics were most commonly used to treat respiratory tract infections (38.1%) and cough (30.4%). Chi-square analysis demonstrated that self-medication with antibiotics was significantly associated with gender, year of study and monthly income. <h4>Conclusions</h4> Undergraduate medical students had moderate knowledge and attitude towards antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance, and an alarmingly high prevalence of self-medication with antibiotics. This highlights the urgent need for tighter legislation regarding the sales of antibiotics in community pharmacies by the state and federal health ministries.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8791537/?tool=EBI |
| spellingShingle | Osman Kamal Osman Elmahi Reem Abdalla Elsiddig Musa Ahd Alaaeldin Hussain Shareef Mohammed Eltahier Abdalla Omer Mugahid Awad Mohamed Elmahi Randa Ahmed Abdalrheem Altamih Rayan Ibrahim Hamid Mohamed Tagwa Faisal Mohamed Alsadig Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study PLoS ONE |
| title | Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Perception and practice of self-medication with antibiotics among medical students in Sudanese universities: A cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | perception and practice of self medication with antibiotics among medical students in sudanese universities a cross sectional study |
| url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8791537/?tool=EBI |
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