A SURVEY OF KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS REGARDING ANTIBIOTICS USE AND RESISTANCE AMONG NEPALESE PATIENTS

  • Shumneva Shrestha Tokha Chandeshwori Primary Health Center, District Public Health Office, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Bidhya Shrestha Kantipur Dental College, Teaching Hospital and Research Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Paridhi Sharma Kantipur Dental College, Teaching Hospital and Research Centre, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Anuja Dahal Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Randhir Sagar Yadav Tokha Chandeshwori Primary Health Center, District Public Health Office, Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Sujaya Gupta Department of Periodontics, Kantipur Dental College, Teaching Hospital and Research Centre Kathmandu, Nepal
  • Satish Kumar Deo Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal
Keywords: Antibiotic, awareness, dental patients, knowledge, resistance

Abstract

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance is an under-appreciated threat to public health in nations around the globe. The unchecked usage of antibiotics in dentistry can also contribute to emerging antibiotic resistance. With the current rampant usage of antibiotics in the global scenario, it is important to know about the knowledge and awareness of patients regarding various aspects of antibiotics. However, relatively few works have been published on the effect of knowledge of antibiotics on its use, even lesser in context to Nepalese dental patients. This study aims to assess the knowledge about antibiotic treatment and awareness of antibiotic resistance among dental patients.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out during world antibiotic awareness week from November 13-19, 2017 in dental patients visiting Kantipur Dental College Teaching Hospital, Kathmandu, Nepal. We explained the aim of the study. Patients seeking dental services who were willing to participate signed an informed written consent were enrolled in the study. Pretested questionnaires were distributed among patients attending dental OPD. The responses in the questionnaire were used to assess the knowledge about various aspects of antibiotic treatment and antibiotic resistance in dental patients. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.

Results: In this study, 136 patients responded out of 203 (with a response rate of 66.7%) that were valid for analysis. The knowledge about antibiotics use was found significantly low based on their actual practice though they had followed doctors and medical professional’s instructions. Our study showed that patient’s knowledge of antibiotics had a positive association with their attitude and had a negative association on awareness of the importance of the public education about antimicrobial resistance.

Conclusion: The dental patients did not have adequate knowledge of antibiotic treatment, use, and resistance. To prevent antibiotic resistance, more efforts should be made to educate the general public regarding the appropriate dispensing of antibiotics.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

1. Eng JV, Marcus R, Hadler JL, Imhoff B, Vugia DJ, Cieslak PR et al. Consumer attitudes and use of antibiotics. Emerg Infect Dis. 2003 Sep; 9(9):1128-35.
2. Magee JT, Pritchard EL, Fitzgerald KA, Dunstan FD, Howard AJ. Antibiotic prescribing and antibiotic resistance in community practice: retrospective study,
1996-8. BMJ. 1999 Nov 6;319(7219):1239-40.
3. Huang Y, Gu J, Zhang M, Zheng R, Yang W, Yang C, Fu Y et al. Knowledge, attitude and practice of antibiotics: a questionnaire study among 2500 Chinese students. BMC Med Educ.2013 Dec 9;13:163
4. André M, Vernby Å, Berg J, Lundborg CS. A survey of public knowledge and awareness related to antibiotic use and resistance in Sweden. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2010 Jun; 65(6):1292-6.
5. Johnson TM, Hawkes J. Awareness of antibiotic prescribing and resistance in primary dental care. Prim Dent J. 2014 Nov;3(4):44-7.
6. Rubinstein E, Keynan Y. Short-course therapy for severe infections. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 2013 Jun; 42(Suppl): S22-4.
7. Hart C, Kariuki S. Antimicrobial resistance in developing countries. BMJ. 1998 Sep 5; 317(7159):647-50.
8. McNulty CA, Boyle P, Nichols T, Clappison P, Davey P. Don't wear me out—the public's knowledge of and attitudes to antibiotic use. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2007 Apr; 59(4):727-38.
9. Grigoryan L, Burgerhof JG, HaaijerRuskamp FM, Degener JE, Deschepper R, Monnet DLet al. Is self-medication with antibiotics in Europe driven by prescribed use? J Antimicrob Chemother. 2007 Jan; 59(1):152-6.
10. Crigger NJ, Holcomb L, Grogan RL, Vasquez M, Parchment C, Almendares J et al. Development of the choices and acquisition of antibiotics model from a descriptive study of a lay Honduran population. Int J Nurs Stud. 2004 Sep; 41(7):745-53.
11. Borg MA, Scicluna EA. Over-thecounter acquisition of antibiotics in the Maltese general population. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 2002 Oct;20(4):253-7.
12. Ceaser S, Wurtz R. "Leftover" antibiotics in the medicine cabinet. Ann Intern Med. 2000 Jul 4;133(1):74.
13. Emslie MJ, Bond CM. Public knowledge, attitudes and behavior regarding antibiotics: A survey of patients in general practice. Eur J Gen Pract. 2003 Sep; 9(3):84-90.
14. Branthwaite A, Pechère JC. PanEuropean survey of patients' attitudes to antibiotics and antibiotic use. J Int Med Res. 1996 May-Jun; 24(3):229-38.
How to Cite
1.
Shumneva Shrestha, Bidhya Shrestha, Paridhi Sharma, Anuja Dahal, Randhir Sagar Yadav, Sujaya Gupta, Satish Kumar Deo. A SURVEY OF KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS REGARDING ANTIBIOTICS USE AND RESISTANCE AMONG NEPALESE PATIENTS. Med. res. chronicles [Internet]. 2018Oct.31 [cited 2024Mar.29];5(5):404-11. Available from: https://medrech.com/index.php/medrech/article/view/331
Section
Original Research Article