Patterns and factors affecting self-medication practices among patients with dermatophytosis in South India - A case control study

Background Dermatophytosis is reaching an epidemic-like scenario in India, with antifungal resistance adding to the problem. Self-medication is said to be one of the causes of resistance. Knowledge of self-medication practices is meagre, necessitating this study. Aim The aim of this study is to ascertain the self-medication behaviour of dermatophytosis patients, identify the factors predicting it, and elucidate the patterns of self-medication followed by dermatophytosis patients. Methods This study was conducted by recruiting patients with dermatophytosis as cases and patients with other dermatoses as controls. Self-medication frequency, clinicodemographic details, and patterns of self-medication were entered into a predesigned proforma. Results A total of 171 patients and 207 controls were recruited in the study. The total proportion of patients who self-medicated among all recruited patients was 21.7% (95% CI: 0.1764,0.2619). There was a significant difference in the proportion of those who self-medicate between dermatophytosis patients (36.8%) and other dermatological problems (9.2%), with more self-medication happening among those with dermatophytosis (P< 0.001). Topical antifungal cream was the most common medicine used for self-medication. There was no significant difference in the proportion of those who self-medicated and those who did not, in all four classes of diagnosis, i.e., naïve dermatophytosis, chronic dermatophytosis, chronic and recurrent dermatophytosis, and chronic and relapsed dermatophytosis Limitations There could be recall bias in the answers of the participants. There was no follow-up to assess outcomes of self-medication. Conclusion The proportion of dermatophytosis patients who self-medicate is lower than in previous studies from other parts of India. Similar studies from other parts of India may help us confirm and understand the geographical reasons for the differences in proportions across the country.