Healthy Skepticism Library item: 10650

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Publication type: Journal Article

Krymchantowski AV, Irikura S, Barbosa JS, Lysia R, Tavares C, Rocha N, Moreira PF.
Headache medications in drugstores of Brazil. Profiles of orientation, recommendation and sale carried out by unskilled employees with inadequate approaches
Revista Brasileira de Medicina 2002; 59:(10-11):705-710

Abstract:

Brazil is among the biggest analgesic consumers in the world. The nasty habit of seeking for health assistance in the drugstore, without seeing a physician, is considered common and cultural. Chronic headache and specially migraine are very common complaints in medicine and promote important burden to millions of people throughout the world. Less than 30% of the migraineurs seek for a doctor each year and less than 2% consults a headache specialist. Those difficulties generate attitudes of self-medication, which may worsen the headache. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether ordinary people, with the same highly suggestive complaints of migraine, would be oriented, in drugstores throughout Brazil, to seek for suitable medical care or would inadequately receive diagnostic suggestions and drugs from the employees not skilled for such a task. One hundred forty three drugstores in various regions of Brazil were visited by 10 people, 5 men and 5 women that had to repeat exactly the same phrases, highly suggestive of a migraine attack. The supposed origin of the headache had to be asked as well as two options of medicines to be taken. The spontaneous initiative of the employees to forward the arguers to a pharmacist or a physician had also to be noted. In 115 (80%) drugstores various diagnostics, including migraine, were given along with suggestions of medications in 112 (78%) and the orientation to seek a doctor in only 60 (42%) or the local pharmacist in 14 (10%). The suggested medications varied from ergots and triptans to bitter tea and could be bought right there without a prescription. We concluded that ordinary people, with complaints of headache with migraine features, receive in most of the Brazilian drugstores, the illegal and inappropriate prescription of various remedies.