Self-Medication with Over-the-Counter and Prescription Drugs and Illness Behavior in Nigerian Artisans

 Self-medication (SM), the use of drugs by individuals to treat self-recognized illnesses or symptoms is one of the major health problems.

 The study assessed the patterns and links between SM and illness behavior in Nigerian artisans.
Patients and

 In this cross-sectional survey, a multistage sampling procedure was employed to select 186 participants (age range = 15 - 61 years; mean = 31.5) in the Ede community of Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria. The artisans (beauticians, autoworkers, and house building construction workers) responded to the self-medication test (SMT) and Illness Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ). Frequency counts were employed to analyze the participants' demographic characteristics, while linear regression analysis was used to answer the research question.

 The findings from this study revealed a 47.8% prevalence of SM, ranging from 14.2% of antibiotics SM to 51.1% of alternative medicine SM. SM was observed to independently and significantly predict disease conviction (R2 = 0.030, P = 0.018), psychological/somatic perception (R2 = 0.034, P = 0.012), general illness reaction (R2 = 0.064, P = 0.000), and general illness behavior (R2 = 0.028, P = 0.023) of the participants.

 Our findings revealed the need for an increase in public enlightenment, awareness, and sensitization among artisans on ills of SM. Also, we recommend psycho-education among this vulnerable group.