Background Previous studies have assessed the prevalence and characteristics of self-medication in COVID-19. However, no systematic review has summarized their findings. Objective We conducted a systematic review to assess the prevalence of self-medication to prevent or manage COVID-19. Methods We used different keywords and searched studies published in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, two preprint repositories, Google, and Google Scholar. We included studies that reported original data and assessed self-medication to prevent or manage COVID-19. The risk of bias was assessed using the Newcastle–Ottawa Scale (NOS) modified for cross-sectional studies. Results We identified eight studies, all studies were cross-sectional, and only one detailed the question used to assess self-medication. The recall period was heterogeneous across studies. Of the eight studies, seven assessed self-medication without focusing on a specific symptom: four performed in the general population (self-medication prevalence ranged between <4% to 88.3%) and three in specific populations (range: 33.9% to 51.3%). In these seven studies, the most used medications varied widely, including antibiotics, chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine, acetaminophen, vitamins or supplements, ivermectin, and ibuprofen. The last study only assessed self-medication for fever due to COVID-19. Most studies had a risk of bias in the “representativeness of the sample” and “assessment of outcome” items of the NOS. Conclusions Studies that assessed self-medication for COVID-19 found heterogeneous results regarding self-medication prevalence and medications used. More well-designed and adequately reported studies are warranted to assess this topic.

Objective: to determine the global offer of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in health and nursing, and to know the characteristics of its content, for continuing education in nursing professionals in Peru. Method: exploratory study was carried out on the websites: Coursera, edX, FutureLearn, XuetangX and Udacity, Class Central and MOOC List. The courses were classified according to the five nursing areas recognized by the Peruvian College of Nurses (Colegio de Enfermeros del Perú, CEP). From each course, data was collected on institution and country of origin, hours per week and total duration in weeks, audio and subtitle language. Results: a total of 654 courses in this modality are offered in health were found, covering the five areas contemplated by the Peruvian College of Nurses. Fourteen courses were specifically developed for nursing with an average duration of five weeks (3.2 hours per week of activities). Eleven came from Anglo-Saxon institutions, with content in English. Only two courses were offered in Spanish and one in Turkish. Conclusion: Massive Open Online Courses would be a useful tool for the continuing education of the Peruvian nurse given the wide offer, including some specifically for nurses, in the different areas of nursing. The content of the course is mostly in English. Expanding the range of languages or subtitles would facilitate the participation of a larger audience.

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Introducción. La participación femenina en el campo de la medicina y la investigación se ha incrementado en los últimos años; sin embargo, aún existen inequidades en la proporción de hombres y mujeres, especialmente en los cargos directivos y la participación en los comités editoriales de revistas científicas.Objetivo. Establecer la participación femenina en los comités editoriales de revistas médicas en Latinoamérica, y explorar su asociación con los cargos editoriales y los indicadores de impacto.Materiales y métodos. Se hizo un estudio descriptivo de tipo bibliométrico de revistas médicas de Latinoamérica indizadas en Scopus, actualizadas y vigentes en el 2020, las cuales se seleccionaron del portal de Scimago Journal & Country Rank. Los equipos editoriales se categorizaron en tres grupos según sus funciones y, posteriormente, se registró el sexo de sus miembros a partir de sus nombres.Resultados. Se incluyeron 113 revistas. En cuanto al liderazgo editorial, entre los 264 directores de comités editoriales, las mujeres representaban el 12,9 %. En lo concerniente a las diferentes funciones, de 1.449 miembros, las mujeres eran el 28,9 %, en tanto que, de los 4.575 miembros de comités consultivos, el 19,0 % correspondía a mujeres. Se observó una mayor presencia de mujeres en los comités editoriales de revistas de Chile, Brasil y Venezuela, y en las especialidades de salud pública, pediatría y anestesiología.Conclusiones. La participación femenina en los comités editoriales de revistas médicas de Latinoamérica es escasa.

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