Self-medication and associated factors among adult outpatients in a Mexican clinic: A cross-sectional study

Backgraund: Self-medication is the highly prevalent activity in which patients obtain and use medications or treatments without the doctor's participation either in the prescription or in the supervision of the treatment. Objectives: To determine the prevalence and characteristics of self-medication (SM) and the sociodemographic and health factors associated with SM in adult patients attending a Mexican ambulatory care center. Methods: A case report form (CRF) was used to collect individual patient data through direct interviews. The CRF collected data by asking questions about patient sociodemographics, self-medication, patient characteristics, and related factors. Results: A total of 5160 adult patients were included in the analysis. Of these, 2571 (49.8%) were female. The patients had a mean (M) age (± standard deviation: SD) of 34.6 (14.8) years. SM was reported by 1278 (24.8%) patients. The main clinical reasons for outpatient SM were COVID-19, headache/migraine and disease prevention. Of the 1344 products identified for SM, 971 (72.2%) were conventional medicines (CM), with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) being the main group, and 373 (27.8%) were complementary or alternative medicines (CAM), with chamomile infusion being the most commonly used CAM. Conclusion: A significant prevalence of SM was found. COVID-19 is the main clinical condition, with NSAIDs/analgesics and chamomile being the main products used. SM products were obtained from pharmacies/stories and leftover medicines. It is highly recommended to increase the knowledge of the rational use of medications.