Characterization of pharmaceutical medication without a medical prescription in children before hospitalization in a resource-limited setting, Cameroon

Abstract

IntroductionThe use of different therapeutic approaches is common among sick children in Cameroon. The main objective of this study was to characterize the use of non-prescription drugs and describe the therapeutic itineraries of sick children before admission to the hospital.MethodsA cross-sectional and prospective study was conducted from January to May 2017. A closed-ended questionnaire (CEQ) consisting of one or several response options was administered to the parents/guardians of the children on admission to the hospital in the pediatric ward of the Laquintinie Hospital in Douala (LHD) and the Cité des Palmiers District Hospital (CPDH) of the city of Douala. Inclusion of participants was made consecutively for adolescents who gave their consent and parents or guardians who signed the informed consent for all children. The confidentiality of the data was ensured by the replacement of the names by codes.ResultsOverall, 295 hospitalized children were included with an average age of 3.1 (SD: 3.3) years in the study. More than half of these children (58.6%) came from LHD. More than 90% of parents had at least one therapeutic recourse (TR). The ratio of boys to girls 3/1. Self-medication (74.1%) and medical consultation (16.9%) were the main therapeutic paths in 1st recourse. The medical consultation (80.2%) and the pharmaceutical advice (16.9%) were used frequently in 2nd recourse. The mean lapse time to see a medical professional was 2.7 days (min-max: 0-14 days). The main symptoms associated with TR were fever (76.6%), vomiting (24.7%) and diarrhea (22.7%). The most frequently used drugs were Analgesics/antipyretics (47.6%), antimalarials (15.0%) and antibiotics (10.2%) and the family medicine box was the highest source of drugs.ConclusionSelf medication remains the first therapeutic path, followed by medical consultation as second therapeutic path taken when the disease is perceived as serious.

Antibiotics Self Medication among Children: A Systematic Review

“…This was a worldwide practice found in various articles from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, but also in Europe (Macedonia) [ 18 , 20 , 36 , 38 , 45 , 47 , 55 , 56 , 66 , 68 , 74 ] and it was significantly related to the practice of self-medication in a Chinese study with an odds ratio of 1.15 (C.I. 1.01–1.30) [ 27 ].…”

“…On average, about an half of parents who practiced ASM administered an antibiotic to relief common cold or cough, while this percentage reduced to 40% for fever and sore throat [ 18 , 19 , 22 , 26 , 27 , 30 , 31 , 34 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 46 , 47 , 50 , 51 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 64 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 74 ].…”

Case Definitions of Clinical Malaria in Children from Three Health Districts in the North Region of Cameroon

“…However, the study faced some limits such as the fact that we were unable to determine the proportion of patients whose fevers were treated with antipyretic drugs prior to the visit. In fact, fever is the predominant symptom of the use of self-medication by parents for the treatment of their children in Cameroon [37]. This may have influenced the proportion of fever recorded in the study population.…”

Annelerin Akılcı İlaç Kullanımına Yönelik Tutumları ve Reçetesiz İlaç Kullanım Durumlarının İncelenmesi

“…Yurt dışında yapılmış çalışmalarda ise reçetesiz ilaç kullanım sıklığının %50 ile %95,1 arasında değiştiği bildirilmektedir. 11,12,14,16 Literatürde annelerin reçetesiz ilaç kullanımının, en yaygın nedenleri arasında daha önce aynı ilacı kullanmış olmaları, sağlık sorununu önemsiz görmeleri, ilaçlara kolay ulaşmaları, zaman kısıtlılığından dolayı sağlık kuruluşuna vakit ayıramamaları gibi nedenler olduğu belirtilmektedir. 18,19,27,35 Çalışmamızda annelerin reçetesiz ilaçları çoğunlukla daha önceki hekimin tavsiyesi üzerine (%80,4) ve 1 gün (%49,1) kullandıklarını, ilaçların dozunu ise daha önceki reçetede yazılan dozdan vererek ayarladıklarını belirttiler.…”

“…9,10 Aynı zamanda ilaçların çocuklarda da akılcı kullanılmadığı belirlenmiştir. [11][12][13][14][15][16] Brezilya 11 için bu oran %59,7, Finlandiya 12 için %50 İspanya 15 için, %8,2 Moğolistan 13 için %42,3, Yunanistan 16 için %95,1, Kamerun 14 için ise %74,1 olarak bildirilmektedir. Ülkemizde ise yapılan çalışmalarda çocuklarda reçetesiz ilaç kullanım sıklığının %46,3 ile %73,8 arasında değiştiği bildirilmiştir.…”