| ORIGINAL RESEARCH |
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| Year : 2023 | Volume
: 15
| Issue : 2 | Page : 184-193 |
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Self-medication practice for dental problems: A cross-sectional study among adults in Kuantan, Pahang in Peninsular Malaysia
Azlini Ismail1, Muhammad Nazmi Abdul Majid2, Muhammad Nabil Mohd Haron3, Mohd Firdaus Akbar Abdul Halim4, Mohamad Shafiq Mohd Ibrahim5, Zurainie Abllah5
1 Department of Fundamental Dental and Medical Sciences, Kulliyyah of Dentistry, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia
2 School of Dental Sciences, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
3 Ministry of Health Malaysia, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia
4 Faculty of Computer and Mathematical Sciences, Universiti Teknologi MARA Kelantan Branch, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia
5 Department of Paediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health, Kulliyyah of Dentistry, International Islamic University Malaysia, Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Azlini Ismail
Department of Fundamental Dental and Medical Sciences, Kulliyyah of Dentistry, International Islamic University Malaysia, Indera Mahkota, Kuantan, 25200 Pahang
Malaysia
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/jioh.jioh_173_22
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Aim: To investigate the prevalence, attitude, and pattern of self-medication practice for dental problems among adults in Kuantan, the state capital of Pahang, Malaysia. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among adults over 18 years of age who live in Kuantan via self-administered online- and paper-based bilingual questionnaires. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analysis were run using IBM SPSS® Version 26 software. Results: From 275 respondents, one-fifth of respondents (21.8%) practised self-medication for dental problems and most of them obtained a mean attitude score of 21.7 ± 2.5% out of 25. Most self-medicating respondents were from the age group of 18–27 years (78.3%), females (55%), singles (78.3%), resides urban area (75.0%), and students (71.7%), with a household income of <MYR 3860 (46.7%), have no dental insurance (66.7 %), and did not have any family relationship with dental personnel (90.0%). Only gender has significant association with self-medication practice, X2 (1, N = 275) = 4.916, P < 0.05. Most of self-medicating respondents gained information related to self-medication from internet (62.0%) and obtained medication from pharmacy (78.0%). The major dental problem that triggered them to self-medicate was toothache (76.0%), and the majority used paracetamol for pain relief (62.0%). Their main reason for self-medication was the perceived mildness of the dental problems (60.0%). Conclusion: Adult populations in Kuantan, Pahang have moderate prevalence (21.8%) in self-medicating practice for dental problems which was mainly caused by toothache and was primarily treated with over-the-counter pain-relief medication. They also have good attitude toward appropriate self-medication. |
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