EXTENSION PROJECT FOR DIABETES MELLITUS PATIENTS: AWARENESS ABOUT DANGERS IN SELF-MEDICATION

Introduction: Self-medication is the practice of taking non-prescription drugs in order to treat self-recognized or self-diagnosed conditions and symptoms. The national average drug intake without medical supervision is 76.4%, exceeding the global average which is 50%. Self-medication can be very harmful in the treatment of chronic diseases such as diabetes mellitus (DM). The most common reasons for not consulting a doctor are quick relief, facility to buy medicines in drugstores and previous experience. This practice may cause the use of wrong drugs, inappropriate dosages, incorrect techniques, adverse reactions and dangerous drug interactions, like the use of insulin associated with acetaminophen, which increase the risk of hypoglycemia. The goal of Diabetic’s Friend Extension Project (PEAD – “Projeto de Extensão Amigo do Diabético”) was to offer awareness about dangers in self-medication for patients diagnosed with Diabetes Mellitus. Methods: This was an extension project executed by PEAD, in “Casa do Diabético”, localized in the city of Belém, of Pará, of Brazil, which target audience were patients diagnosed with DM. Firstly a questionnaire was applied and then lectures were given based on the answers of the questionnaire. Results: Out of the 63 patients (age between 37 and 81 years old), self-medication was practiced by 44 (69.8%) subjects. Only 45.5% of the respondents perceived risks of self-medicating. Through the lectures based on these answers, all of them became aware of the dangers in self-medication in the end of the project. Conclusion: In this extension project, diabetic patients were benefited by knowing the risks of self-medication.