Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39221048›Full record

ArticleHealth science reports2024

Self-medication for dental caries-associated toothache among dental outpatients attended at public health facilities in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: A cross-sectional study.

Karpal Singh Sohal, Linus Jeremiah, Uchenna Okechi, Ashu Michael Agbor

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Article in Health science reports, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Karpal Singh SohalDepartment of Oral Health Services Muhimbili National Hospital Dar es Salaam Tanzania.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9456-981X
Linus JeremiahDepartment of Orthodontics, Paedodontics and Community Dentistry Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences Dar es Salaam Tanzania.
Uchenna OkechiDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, College of Medicine University of Nigeria Enugu Nigeria.
Ashu Michael AgborSchool of Dentistry, Faculty of Health and Biomedical Sciences Université des Montagne's Bangangté Cameroon.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background and aim: Self-medication is a common practice worldwide, and its prevalence ranges between 20% and 80% among patients suffering from dental pain. The socioeconomic status of an individual plays a key role in self-medication practice, especially sex and education level. This study aims to investigate the extent of self-medication practice for toothache due to dental caries among adults in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Methods: This was an analytical cross-sectional study carried out over 6 months. It included adult patients presenting with toothache in public dental clinics. A questionnaire captured information on demography, self-medication practice, the substance used for self-medication, duration of self-medication, and reason for self-medication. Univariate analysis was carried out to assess factors associated with self-care remedies. The probability level of Results: A total of 420 participants took part in this survey with a majority (54.3%) being females. The ages of the participants ranged between 18 years and 79 years, with a mean age of 33.37 (SD = 12.64) years. Nearly all (98.5%) participants used some sort of self-prescribed remedies for managing toothache before attending a dental clinic for appropriate treatment. The sociodemographic status of the participants did not influence the practice of self-medication. Conclusion: About 98% of patients suffering from toothache in Tanzania practice self-medication, and it cuts across all social strata of the adult dental population. Patient or Public Contribution: Patients with toothache secondary to dental caries participated in the pilot study and were consulted on the suitability of the study tool.

Indexed as

over‐the‐counter drugspublic health facilityself‐medicationTanzaniatoothache

Identifiers

PMID39221048
PMCPMC11365525

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.