The practice of self-medication in primary dysmenorrhea among medical students.

Dr. Nida Nowreen; Dr. Sonika Sangra; Dr. Neha

Volume : VIII, Issue : XII, December - 2018

The practice of self-medication in primary dysmenorrhea among medical students.

Dr. Nida Nowreen, Dr. Sonika Sangra, Dr. Neha

Abstract :

Introduction: Dysmenorrhea is the most common gynaecological complaints in young adult females which not only affects the quality of life but also reduces productivity. It is a common observation that medical students are involved in the practice of self–medication which is the use of medicines by individuals to treat self–recognized illnesses or symptoms. The study was carried out with an aim to evaluate the pattern of self–medication for self–diagnosed dysmenorrhea among medical students. Material and Methods: This was a cross–sectional study conducted among 60 female students with dysmenorrhoea in in the department of physiology, SKIMS medical college. Data was collected with a structured questionnaire having three parts. Data was collected and analysed using descriptive statistics. Results: The average age of menarche of the participants was 12.85+ 1.21 years. Two thirds of the participants i.e. 68.3% practiced self–medication, 11.6% used heat application in form of a hot water bottle or taking a hot bath as a relieving measure, 10 % used home remedies like turmeric milk, dietary ginger etc.,6.6% rested or slept and only 3.3 % consulted a doctor. The drugs used for self– medication were fixed drug combination of mefenamic acid and dicyclomine (70.73 %), paracetamol and dicyclomine (21.95 %), or paracetamol alone (7.31%).Conclusion: The practice of self–medication for dysmenorrhea is very common among medical students with drugs like mefenamic acid , paracetamol and dicyclomine.