Self medication practices among medical students of a private institute
Open accessAbstract
The study was undertaken to evaluate various aspects of self-medication in medical students. A prospective, cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study was carried out among 488 medical students selected by simple random sampling from January 2013 to June 2013. Data was collected and analyzed for counts and percentage. Students reported self-medication in the preceding one year was 71.7 % and the prevalence was more in final year students. Fever and headache were the most frequently reported illnesses, commonly used drugs were antipyretics and analgesics, obtained information through reading material, and reasons quoted were minor ailments and quick relief. Majority students agreed that medical knowledge is necessary for administration of medicine by self. Self-medication is highly prevalent in medical students, which is quite alarming.
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Cultural beliefs greatly influence how people perceive health and illness, often leading them to view their conditions as minor.
“Cultural beliefs greatly influence how people perceive health and illness, often leading them to view their conditions as minor.”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
The Results (page unavailable) report that 55.4% of self-medicating medical students cited minor ailments as a reason for self-medication. The Discussion (page unavailable) mentions belief in different systems of medicine, but does not show that cultural beliefs shape perceptions of illness or cause people to view conditions as minor. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredMany individuals in India prefer self-medication over professional care, believing it to be acceptable and effective.
“Consequently, many individuals prefer self-medication over professional care, believing it to be acceptable and effective.22,23”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
The Introduction and Discussion (pages unavailable in our copy) describe self-medication as widespread in India, and the Discussion says cumbersome consultations increased its use among the medical students studied. The Results report quick relief as a reason for self-medication, but the paper does not establish that many individuals in India prefer it because they believe it is both acceptable and effective. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredStudents, especially healthcare students, feel more empowered to self-diagnose because of their exposure to medical knowledge.
“Several studies pointed to the fact that students, especially healthcare students, feel more empowered to self-diagnose due to their exposure to medical knowledge, which was consistent across studies.23,25,35,39”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
The Results (Fig. 4; page unavailable) list confidence in self-diagnosis as a reason for self-medication among the medical students. The Discussion (page unavailable) suggests that greater knowledge of medicines might explain higher self-medication prevalence in later years. The paper does not establish that exposure to medical knowledge makes students feel more empowered to self-diagnose, or extend that relationship to students generally. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredSocial norms discourage seeking medical help for minor ailments and promote the use of traditional remedies passed down through generations.
“Social norms discourage seeking medical help for minor ailments and promote the use of traditional remedies passed down through generations.”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
The Results report that minor ailments were a common reason for self-medication among the medical students. The Discussion says some used ayurvedic or homeopathic medicine because of childhood practice or belief in those systems. It does not attribute avoidance of medical help to social norms or say remedies were passed down through generations. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPositive past experiences of managing similar conditions without professional intervention reinforce self-medication behavior.
“Positive past experiences of managing similar conditions without professional intervention also reinforce this behavior.”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
Time constraints and emergencies prompt people to resort to self-medication for quick relief and convenience.
“Furthermore, time constraints and emergencies prompt people to resort to self-medication for quick relief and convenience.22,23”
From Prevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2025) · cites this paper as [23]
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Cites
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Rashid, M., Chhabra, M., Kashyap, A., Undela, K., & Gudi, S. K. (2020) · Current Clinical Pharmacology · doi:10.2174/1574884714666191122103953 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
“Kasulkar 2015 Nagpur Maharashtra 2013 488 [15]”
BackgroundPrevalence and patterns of self-medication practices in India: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Chaudhary, V., Kumari, S., Sharma, B., Ahuja, C., Kishore, H., & Pal, B. (2025) · Medical Journal Armed Forces India · doi:10.1016/j.mjafi.2024.11.008 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
- Authors
- Kasulkar, A., & Gupta, M.
- Affiliations
- NKP Salve Institute of Medical Sciences and Lata Mangeshkar Hospital (IN)
- ORCID
- Gupta, M
- Venue
- Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Publisher
- OMICS Publishing Group
- Published
- 2015
- Volume
- 77
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 178
- ISSN
- 0250-474X (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4442466
- OpenAlex
- W1846239548
- Cited by
- 119
- References
- 2
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 6
- FWCI
- 8.17
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- cc-by-nc-sa
- Locations
- Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics › Pharmacology › Pharmacy and Medical Practices
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology › Antibiotic Use and Resistance
- Life Sciences › Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics › Pharmacology › Pharmaceutical industry and healthcare
- Keywords
- self-medication, medical students, prevalence, fever, headache, antipyretics, analgesics, self-medication knowledge, minor ailments
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