Abstract
Upper gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are usual complaints among patients presenting to Italian community pharmacies. However, information on treatment history of those patients is often lacking. This descriptive, cross-sectional study aims at exploring the medication history of individuals with upper GI tract symptoms visiting one of the 20 enrolled community pharmacies, over a period of 7 months, based on the administration of a questionnaire. Of 1,020 interviewees, 62.1% had asked for a medical consultation. The most frequent symptom was epigastric burning (31.8%), followed by acid regurgitation (14.6%) and post-prandial fullness (12.0%). Of the 1,609 therapies, proton pump inhibitors constituted the most represented therapeutic class (35.6%) followed by antacids (17.5%) and alginate-based products (17.2%). In treating symptoms, 38.1% of the patients do not seek medical advice, while 42.0% rely on non-prescription therapies. As findings suggest, support to patients with GI disorders in community pharmacies can be enhanced for a safer self-medication.
Subject
Pharmacology (medical),Pharmaceutical Science,Pharmacy
Cited by
2 articles.
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