Assessment of medical students' knowledge and consumption of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) at Al-Bayan University

Background: Self-medication is one of the irrational drugs used; it is defined as using medicines to treat self-diagnosed diseases without consulting a healthcare professional. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are groups of analgesic medications that are used by millions of people around the world with or without prescription. Inappropriate self-medication can have several potential risks, such as harmful interactions with prescribed medicines and inappropriate duration of use. Aim: This study aimed to assess the pattern of NSAID consumption among medical students in private University in addition to evaluating their knowledge towards NSAIDs. Methodology: The study was conducted cross-sectional among (218) undergraduate medical students in a pharmacy college at a private University. The questionnaire was spread via Google Forms online and the informed consent of the participants were collected. Results: Our data showed that aspirin was the most common type of NSAIDs used by male and female students 67 (30.7%); the second medicine for females was ibuprofen 44 (33.3%), while diclofenac was the one preferred by male students 20 (23.3%). Most of the participants based on the results were taking NSAIDs to relieve headache pain 67 (30.7%) for both males and females. In addition, results show that dysmenorrhea was another purpose for using NSAIDs among females and musculoskeletal pain among males, 23 (17.6%) and 47 (26.7%), respectively. About half of the students, 103 (47.2%), used NSAIDs after they asked the pharmacist. Most of the students, 170 (78%), stated that they have an idea about the general adverse effects of these medicines, 141 (64.7%), and 146 (67%) of them believe that NSAIDs are abused. Conclusion: The results of the present study demonstrated that the knowledge of medical students regarding the adverse effects of NSAIDs is high. The majority of students believe that NSAIDs may be abused and that they should not be sold without a prescription. The most common NSAIDs used are aspirin then, ibuprofen, and diclofenac; the purpose was to relieve the pain of headaches, dysmenorrhea, and musculoskeletal.