Retention of pharmacological knowledge about analgesics and pain management

Introduction: pain is the main reason for consultation in usual clinical practice, which brings whit a series of comorbidities that ultimately affect the quality of life of those who suffer from it. Dedicating the necessary time to this topic and systematizing its appropriate management from the formative stage is essential to facilitate learning and long-term memorization. Objective: to determine the degree of retention of pharmacological knowledge about analgesics and to identify the main deficiencies in this regard. Methods: a descriptive pedagogical study that consisted of administering a 10 - question exam, containing the most relevant elements of the topic, to 52 medical students in their 5th year at Salvador Allende Faculty. Results: 82,7 % of the students passed. However, there were no grades of 5; only 11,5 % scored 4 points, and over 70 % scored 3. The main deficiencies were related to the safety of NSAIDs. There were also errors in topics related to pure analgesics and opioids. Conclusions: although promotion was good, the quality of knowledge retention about pain was low. The deficiencies found suggest the need to establish more effective teaching strategies to improve the teaching and learning of the topic.