title: Drug consumption pattern in low socio-economic group in an urban community.
abstract: 117 families, having a total population of 558 were studied regarding drug consumption pattern. It was found that the average no. of episodes per person was 0.99 of which drugs were consumed for 72% of episodes. Significant difference was observed in consumption of drugs between males and females. Allopathic medicines were consumed for 93.3% of the episodes and the major source (53.8%) of medical care was from private practitioners. It was seen that the number of drugs consumed per episode of sickness rose as the per capita income increased. Vitamins and Minerals (22.3%) were the main group of drugs consumed. Drugs acting on the alimentary system (17.5%), Respiratory System (14.7%), Antimicrobials (14.6%) and Analgesics (10.8%) contributed to 80% of drug intake.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Community Medicine, National Medical College, Calcutta.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mitra
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Saha
authors.forename: R N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Chaudhuri
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004358:Drug Therapy / Q000145:classification / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004363:Drug Utilization; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006296:Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006705:Homeopathy; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty; D012621:Seasons; D012651:Self Medication / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014505:Urban Population