Self-Medication Practices, Prevalence, and Associated Factors among Syrian Adult Patients: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objectives: Self-medication (SM) means using drugs to treat self-diagnosed diseases or symptoms. Despite its important role in reducing the load on medical services, it may bear many risks. This study aims to determine the prevalence of SM and its determinants among adult inpatients of Damascus Hospital, Syria. Study design. Cross-sectional study. Methods: 453 adult inpatients were asked to complete a questionnaire through face-to-face interviews. Data were analysed using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS). A chi-square test was used to detect correlation between variables. Results: Out of 453 respondents, 67.3% practiced self-medication. Most used drugs were analgesics, antipyretics, and antibiotics. The main indications for SM included headache, cough/flu, and body aches. Pharmacists were the main source of knowledge about the drugs used in SM. The leading reason for practicing SM was the mildness of the complaint. Approximately half of the participants declared they read leaflets of drugs they used in SM. In this study, SM was significantly associated with monthly income, age, and living place. Conclusions: The prevalence of SM in Damascus Hospital is high. Larger, nationwide studies are needed to identify the prevalence and determining factors of SM in Syria and to suggest the appropriate measures to control this phenomenon.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anger and mental health of school students in Syria after nine years of conflict: a large-scale school-based study.

BACKGROUND: The Syrian crisis has entered its ninth year with many being affected by the war. This is the largest-scale study that aims to evaluate the psychological profile of secondary school students in Syria. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study in schools in Damascus, Syria. The surveys assessed working habits, smoking, war exposure, grades, socioeconomic status (SES), social support, health-related quality of life (HRQL), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), problematic anger, and other parameters. RESULTS: This study included 1369 students of which 53% suffered from PTSD and 62% from problematic anger. Around 46% declared a fair or worse general health and 61% had moderate or severe mental health. Only 9.3% did not report exposure to any war-related variable. War exposure had an impact on PTSD, anger, and HRQL, but not on students' grades. Smoking, having consanguineous parents, and working did not have a clear association with grades or anger. Social support weakly reduced PTSD and anger scores. Interestingly, working was associatedwith lowerPTSD scores but was associated with a worse physical component of HRQL. CONCLUSION: This is the largest study on school students in Syria that reports the psychological ramifications of war. Although the direct effects of war could not be precisely described, the high burden of PTSD and anger distress was a strong reflection of the chronic mental distress.