Background and Objectives: Self-medication can cause significant challenges for the individuals and community, especially in women during pregnancy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of self-medication among the pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in a tertiary care center of Nepal. Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 225 pregnant women were evaluated for the prevalence of self-medication during pregnancy. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used for statistical analysis of data. Results: The results showed that the prevalence of self-medication, in pregnant women was 41.3%. The leading illness/ symptoms which led to self-medication among pregnant women attending clinic were to relieve headaches 29 (31.2%), cough 21 (22.6%), vomiting 13 (14%), treat fever 11 (11.8%), urinary tract infections 11 (11.8%) and drugs commonly reported for self-medication were paracetamol (30.10%), cough remedies (19.30%), antiemetics (16.13%), analgesics (10.75%). Conclusion: Prevalence of self-medication among pregnant women is high in Nepal. This is a threat to the safety of the developing foetus and the pregnant woman. Therefore, it seems necessary to provide public trainings for all women of reproductive age and train them about the dangers and side effects of self-medication.

Not uploaded.Key words: Abortion; Exploration; Pelvic peritonitis; trimestir; Unsafe abortionDOI: 10.3126/jnhrc.v6i1.2438Journal of Nepal Health Research Council Vol. 6, No. 1, Issue 12, April, 2008 Page: 11-15

Introduction: Upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) like pharyngitis, tonsillitis, sinusitis, laryngitis and otitis media are the most common infections encountered in ENT outpatients. As these infections are caused by the microorganism they should be treated with the antimicrobial agents. The aim of this study was to determine the prescribing pattern of antibiotics in ENT outpatients of tertiary Care Hospital in Bharatpur, Nepal. Methods: It was prospective observational study which was carried out in the ENT Department of College of Medical Science, Bharatpur, Chitwan, Nepal. Total 267 prescriptions were studied. Patient of all age groups and sex were included in the study. Prescriptions were evaluated based on the World Health Organization (WHO) core drug prescribing indicators. Results on categorical measurements are presented in numbers and percentage which was used to generate tables and graphs. Data analysis was done by SPSS software version 20.0. Results: A total of 267 prescriptions were collected and analyzed during the study. Average number of drugs per prescription was 3.12 in which average number of antibiotic per prescription was 1.041. Commonly prescribed antibiotics belongs to the penicillin group (52%) followed by macrolide (27%). Most of the drugs were prescribed by their brand names (92%). Besides antibiotics the common adjuvant drugs that are being prescribed were nasal decongestant (44%) followed by anti-histaminics (27.7%). Conclusions: The present study highlights the wide use of Amoxicillin and clavulanic acid combination for ENT infections. Measures to emphasize the use of generic names are necessary to promote rational drug use.