Self medication practices – getting rid of troublesome or taking risks for troublesome - during covid pandemic

Background: Self-medication practice is the use of OTC medications for self-treatment without prior consultation with registered medical practitioner. Travel restrictions, fear of getting contacted with virus and increased influence of social media has led to an increase in self-medication practices among general public. These practices can be associated with serious ADRs with lifelong consequences. Objectives: To assess the most prominent ailment for which self-medication has been practiced and to assess the various resources and reasons observed in self-medication practices. Methods and Material: The prospective, cross-sectional study is based on web-based survey was conducted from June 2021-December 2021. A self-administered questionnaire was developed, validated and distributed using google forms through social media networks. Chi square test for significance was used to find the association between the variables. Results: A total of 309 participants completed the questionnaire. Out of them 54.4% were female and 45.6% were male, 65.8% were unemployed and 34.2% were employed. Of all 64.2% were students, 30% were working professionals and 5.5% were households. Most of the participants i.e., 47% were found to self-medicate at times during severe conditions. The most frequent medical condition that led to self-medicate was cold/cough(66%) followed by fever(64%) and aches(49.5%). Socio demographic variables like age group between 18-30, χ2(9,N+309)=110.2,P<0.0001, unemployed participants χ2(6,N=309)=110.2,P<0.001, and rural residence χ2(6,N=309)=104.04,P=<0.001 were found to be associated with self-medication practice. Conclusions: Self-medication practicesarepsychologically influenced by trust, circumstances, frustration plays a vital role in making the suggestions beneficial. Self-medication practices were more prevalent in the rural community.