Knowledge, attitude, and practice analysis of corticosteroid use among patients: A study based in the United Arab Emirates
Feb 09, 2017
DOI: 10.5455/njppp.2017.7.1234409022017
Published in: National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Publisher: National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology
Background: Corticosteroids (CS) have long been known as the most powerful of all known anti-inflammatory agents. Since their introduction in 1949, they have shown pivotal role in the treatment of various serious disorders such as autoimmune diseases, allergic processes, organ transplantation, rheumatologic, dermatological, pulmonary, hematological, ophthalmologic, gastrointestinal disorders, and others. Nevertheless, such massive clinical use does not come without risks, where prolonged use has been linked to several serious side effects. Therefore, careful consideration of precautions recommended for safe use of CS is of paramount importance. Aims and Objectives: To assess knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) analysis of the proper use of different dosage forms of CS medications in different sets of CS users in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to explore the extent to which steroid outpatients were well engaged with medication proper use and safety-related behaviors. Materials and Methods: A structured interview-based methodology was adopted to assess the KAPs revolving around steroid usage in patients located in the UAE cities; Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman and Al Ain. Patients (n = 250) were selected randomly from different outpatient clinics all over the previously designated cities. The prepared interview questions were selected based on related therapeutics guidelines regarding aspects of proper patients CS use. Data were collected by well-trained researchers to conduct such interviews. SPSS V16.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, USA) was used for data analysis. Standard descriptive and analytical statistics were used to analyze the data. StudentÂ’s t-test was used to compare the mean difference of continuous variables. Results: Overall, our study showed poor KAP results among different UAE patients using different CS dosage forms. Conclusion: Despite the massive use of CS in almost every clinical settings and its inherent associated risks, patients still needs provisions for better education regarding their medication efficacy, safety, and proper use. By careful follow-up of proper CS use instructions, both patients and physicians would positively reach an optimized cost-effective therapeutic approach with much more improved benefit/risk ratio.
Other Researches
Background and aims: Worldwide low levels of vitamin D (< 30ng/dL) is prevalent and linked to bone disorders, diabetes and coronary heart disease. Deficiency in Vitamin D is a diagnostic challenge in asymptomatic individuals. The present study aimed...
Health literacy is how well the patients are able to attain, deal with, and understand basic health information. This is particularly important when it comes to comprehending prescribed medication instructions. To improve the communication strategie...
Objectives: This study aimed to investigate physicians’ and pharmacists’ perceptions of the importance of pharmacists’ role in healthcare in Egypt, and actual delivery of these roles in practice. Identifying any differences and inconsistencies betwe...
Background and aims: Worldwide low levels of vitamin D (< 30ng/dL) is prevalent and linked to bone disorders, diabetes and coronary heart disease. Deficiency in Vitamin D is a diagnostic challenge in asymptomatic individuals. The present study aimed...
The objectives of this article were to review the mechanism and clinical significance of statins-macrolides interaction, determine which combination has the highest risk for the interaction, and identify key patients' risk factors for the interactio...
Effects of Alogliptin on hypertensive chronic kidney disease with Type 2 diabetes mellitus
Background: Diabetes mellitus(DM)is a leading cause of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Theantihyperglycemic treatment options for patients with Type 2 DM are limited because of safety and tolerability concerns. Aims: To retrospectively...
Abstract Aim. To evaluate the safety issues and adverse effects of using TCHP regimen (docetaxel, carboplatin, trastuzumab, and pertuzumab) versus TCP regimen (docetaxel, carboplatin, and trastuzumab) in older postmenopausal women with nonmetastati...