A survey study on knowledge, attitude, and practice toward self-medication practice with over-the-counter drugs among under graduate dental students

Introduction: Self-medication practice is very common, especially after the coronavirus disease 2019 period. Self-medication among future health-care professionals can cause serious adverse drug reactions (ADRs) as well as antimicrobial resistance that can lead to potential damage to our health-care system. There has been a drastic inclination among medical and dental students and practitioners toward self-medication with over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. OTC medicines or nonprescription drugs are the group that can be purchased without a legible prescription from a registered medical practitioner and are safe as well as effective also. Aim: The aim of our study was to know about self-medication practice with OTC drugs among undergraduate dental students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey study was conducted among all the dental undergraduate students of K. M. Shah Dental college, Piparia, from December 2022 to March 2023. The study was initiated only after getting approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee. A prevalidated questionnaire was given to the students, and responses were obtained. The collected data were subjected to percentage analysis. Results: The prevalence of self-medication practice among dental undergraduates from our study was found to be in 104 (67.1%) out of 155 students who enrolled in the study. The most common reason for self-medication was prior knowledge about drugs 88 (58.3%) and the most common drugs used were nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs 93.5%. Among the 155 participants, 110 (71%) mentioned that they got cured after self-medicating themselves with OTC drugs and 18 (11.6%) participants encountered adverse reactions. Conclusion: Self-medication was commonly practiced by dental students who were enrolled in our survey study. Self-medication should be considered an emerging problem, especially among undergraduate dental/medical students because they do not have enough significant knowledge about drugs, dose regime, duration of treatment, and their possible ADRs.