Assessment of self-medication practices in the context of Covid-19 outbreak in Togo

Abstract

Background: To date, there is no effective treatment for Covid-19 which is a pandemic due to a new coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. In Togo, where four in five people practice self-medication, the absence of a cure for Covid-19 and its constant progression requires an assessment of self-medication patterns in the context of the pandemic. This study aimed at estimating the prevalence of self-medication to prevent Covid-19 and its associated factors in Lomé, Togo. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Lomé, capital city of Togo, from April 23rd to May 8th, 2020 in a sample of participants from five sectors: healthcare, air transport, police, road transport and informal. Participants were invited to give information about their self-medication practices to prevent Covid-19 within the two weeks preceding the survey. Results: A total of 955 participants (71.6% of men) with a median age of 36 (IQR 32–43) were included. Around 22.1% were in the air transport sector, 20.5% in police, and 38.7% in the health sector. The overall prevalence of self-medication to prevent Covid-19 was 34.2% (95CI%: 31.2-37.3%). Most commonly used products were vitamin C (27.6%) and traditional medicine (10.2%). Only 2.0% of participants reported using Chloroquine/Hydroxychloroquine. Female sex (aOR=1.90; p<0.001), working in the health sector (aOR=1.89; p= 0.001), secondary education level (aOR= 2.28; p= 0.043) and university education level (aOR= 5.11; p<0.001) were associated with self-medication. Conclusion: One third of high-risk populations in Lomé have practiced self-medication. Intensifying awareness campaigns is crucial to fight misinformation about alleged Covid-19 prevention products on social media.

Prevalence, Attitude and Knowledge of Self Medication during Covid-19 Disease Pandemic

“…Similar conditions have been documented as a common reason for selfmedication in study held in Kenya 11 . Most of the respondents (37.61%) took antibiotic as self-medication for fever during COVID-19 outbreak in a study held at Dhaka Bangladesh, followed by throat pain (28.79%), dry cough (14.20%).This study reported that Azithromycin was the drug most consumed among all the surveyed drugs for treatment of SARS COVID 19.These results are in consistent with a study conducted in Peru 13,14 .…”

Prevalence of severe adverse events in health professionals after receiving the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccination in Togo, March 2021

“…We did not include, the use of medication in our definition, given that the study population was included HPs who have easy access to medication and a proven tendency to self-medicate [23,24]. Interpretations of the severity of adverse events must take into account the definition we adopted.…”

Percepção dos idosos sobre as repercussões da pandemia por COVID-19 em sua saúde

“…Fonte: Autores. Estudos internacionais mostram que diante dessa crise pandêmica e da variedade de informações que circulam na internet, plantas e muitas outras substâncias sem os requisitos mínimos de eficácia e têm sido propostas para tratar ou prevenir COVID-19 e esse uso sem orientação médica é considerado automedicação, por conta disso, casos de envenenamento e morte foram relatados nos EUA e na Nigéria em pessoas que se automedicavam com cloroquina o que torna imprescindível intensificar a educação em saúde com campanhas de conscientização para combater a desinformação sobre os produtos de prevenção do COVID-19 nas mídias sociais (Sadio et al, 2021).…”