Agrawal, Siddhi, Wable, Revati, Benison, Florence, Mathew, Shalu, Pawar, Atmaram, and Deshpande, Prasanna
BACKGROUND: Over-the-counter (OTC) medications are accessible medications convenient for consumers available in community pharmacies and other retail outlets without a prescription. When it comes to the use of OTC medications in sports, the primary use is to treat pain and inflammation. Athletes may also take medicines to treat specific medical conditions or common illnesses such as cold, congestion, cough, allergies, and skin infections. METHODS: It was a prospective, observational, multi-centered study conducted among female athletes at various sites in Pune. The study was conducted for duration of 6 months. A questionnaire was developed and distributed. Chi-square and Pearson correlation coefficient tests were used for the assessment of P value. P < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. RESULTS: In this study, a total of 324 questionnaires were distributed, of which 300 participants returned with completed questionnaires, i.e., with a response rate of 92.59%. Majority, i.e., 49.34% of participants, belonged to the age group of 21โ25 years. The average KAPC score was found to be 11.93 (for knowledge), 8.42 (for attitude), 10 (for practice), and 2.41 (for cost) out of 20, 17, 23, and 3, respectively. The overall assessment of the KAPC score was found to be good, i.e., "58.24%." The P values calculated were only significant for weight versus attitude (0.000984) and weight versus practice (0.000431). CONCLUSION: The athletes had good knowledge and good cost management approach however; they showed poor attitude and poor practice regarding OTC medications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]