Self-medication practices and rational drug use habits among university students: a cross-sectional study from Kahramanmara, Turkey

Background. Self-medication refers to the use of medicines to treat self-diagnosed diseases without consulting any healthcare professionals. Irrational drug use and self-medication have serious negative consequences both on health and economy. Therefore, the aim of this study is to assess the habits related to rational use of drugs (RUD) and to estimate the prevalence lof self-medication practices among university students. Methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted on university students in Kahramanmara. From May 2017 to June 2017 a total of 960 students filled a "Rational Use of Drugs Questionnaire". Results. The prevalence of practicing self-medication in students was 63.4%. The, most common meatanes tnat the stuaentshad consumed without'prescription were analgesics by 39.5%, antibiotics by 36.9% and cold remedies by 24.0%. The rate of students who declared that they were famihar with RUD and "rational use of antibiotics" (RUA) was 45.9%. Reading/checking the instructions in the prospectus (OR = 1.529, 95% CI [1.176-1.990]},'understanding the context of the prospectus (OR = 1.529, 95% CI [1.1761.990]), understanding the context of the prospectus (OR = 1.893, 95% CI [1.3872.584]), compliance with the duration of antibiotic treatment (OR = 1.597, 95% CI [1.2312.071]) and consulting a physician in case of a side effect (OR = 1.350, 95% CI [1.0371.757]) were significantly higher among students who were familiar with RUD as compared to who were not. Discussion Since the awareness of RUD among university students was found to be inadequate, it has critical importance to hold educational activities with the cooperation of physicians, health organizations, universities, non-governmental organizations and media to avoid negative consequences of irrational drug use and self-medication.