• JNMA J Nepal Med Assoc · Jan 2024

    Over-the-counter Medication Use among Patients Presenting with Fever in the Emergency Department in a Tertiary Care Hospital.

    • Mrikchhya Ghimire, Ujjwol Prasad Risal, and Rabin Bhandari.
    • Department of General Practice and Emergency Medicine, B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Sunsari, Nepal.
    • JNMA J Nepal Med Assoc. 2024 Jan 2; 62 (269): 303330-33.

    IntroductionOver-the-counter medication use is commonly practised all over the world. However, in a developing country like Nepal, antibiotics form an essential component of OTC drugs. Fever is one of the most common clinical complaints which makes a patient go to the local pharmacy for over-the-counter medication. This study aimed to find out the prevalence of over-the-counter medication use among patients presenting with fever in the Emergency Department in a tertiary care hospital.MethodsThis descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among patients who visited the Emergency Department with the complaint of at least one episode of documented or undocumented fever after obtaining ethical approval from the Institutional Review Committee. Data collection was conducted from 24 June 2022 to 30 September 2022. Convenience sampling method was used. The point estimate was calculated at a 95% Confidence Interval.ResultsAmong 332 patients, 314 (94.58%) (92.14-97.02, 95% Confidence Interval) patients used over-the-counter medication. Antibiotic use was seen in 221 (70.38%) patients.ConclusionsThe prevalence of over-the-counter medication use among patients with fever was found to be higher than the studies conducted in similar studies.Keywordsemergency departments; fever; prevalence.

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