Assessment of self-medication practices with antibiotics among undergraduate university students in Rwanda

INTRODUCTION: Antimicrobial resistance (AR) is on a rise as one of the major global public health threats. It is therefore important to assess contributory factors to the rise in the cases of resistance reported. The main objective of this study was to assess the self-medication practices with antibiotics among the University of Rwanda students in Huye Campus. METHODS: A sample of 570 students from all levels and colleges of the University of Rwanda in Huye Campus were selected using a simple random sampling to participate in this study. A questionnaire was administered to be answered individually by the consented respondents where the self-medication practices with antibiotics in the past 6 months were assessed. The results were statistically analyzed using SPSS v.16. RESULTS: The study showed that 12.1% (n=69) practiced self-medication with antibiotics. The major reason for self-medication with antibiotics was illness not serious to have a consultation (50.72%). The main diseases being treated were common cold/fever/cough (47.83%). The most used antibiotic for self-medication was Amoxicillin capsules (59.42%), while the main source of antibiotics was the community pharmacy (72.42%). CONCLUSION: Self-medication with antibiotics is not uncommon among the university students. Regarding the main reasons of self-medication with antibiotics, diseases being treated, and the antibiotics used, it was found that all these may be related to the students' lack of knowledge about the need for rational use of antibiotics and a study was needed to confirm it.