Self-medication practice, its causes and risk factors among people in Tehran, Iran: A descriptive-analytic study

Self-medication practice, unfortunately, is a current issue in different countries. patterns of selfmedication vary among different populations and are influenced by different characteristics. so, this study was aimed at the prevalence of self-medication practice in tehran. this descriptive-analytic study was performed from oct 2019 to march 2020 by a researcher-designed questionnaire among people. the main determinants of the questionnaire included personal information, diet pattern, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and self-medication habits. chi-square and tukey's post hoc tests were used for statistical analysis of data. eight hundred people participated in this study. the rate of self-medication was 78% among men and 88% among women. 35.75% of the participants had a chronic illness, and 90% of them had a history of self-medication. a significant correlation between gender and self-medication (p=0.45, r=0.55), also significant correlation between exercise and self-medication (p=0.206, r=0.75), alcohol consumption and self-medication (p=0.37, r=0.19) were not seen. education and income levels, chronic diseases, history of drug allergies, smoking, and fast-food consumption seem to create self-medication behavior. having an old doctor's prescription, saving time, as well as advising family members, were the most important reasons for self - medication. the most commonly used medications were analgesics, common cold medicines, and gastrointestinal drugs. self-medication was mostly used to treat headaches, migraines, and common cold symptoms such as cough and muscle pain.