ABSTRACT
Objectives: A cross-sectional survey was conducted to evaluate the knowledge, awareness and practice among the lay public regarding storage and disposal of unused and expired medicines. Materials and Methods: This was an observational, cross-sectional, single-centre and questionnaire-based survey. After obtaining Institutional Ethics Committee approval, the study was conducted using a pre-validated structured questionnaire distributed among the lay public visiting a tertiary care hospital located in an urban metropolitan city. Results: Four hundred of 720 individuals visiting the tertiary care hospital participated in the survey. The results revealed that 75% had never referred to any sources to get the correct information about the proper and safe disposal of medicines and had no knowledge regarding the same. About 12.75% of study participants reported that they were educated regarding the disposal of medicines by their treating physicians (RR: 0.71 [95% CI: 0.51–0.99]) when compared with the other sources of information (18%) with statistically significant contribution made by the physicians (p<0.05). About 67% of the public stored their medicines at room temperature. Majority (83.75%) of the study participants reported that they disposed unused and expired drugs in the dustbin. Only 42.5% of the public knew the detrimental effect of improper drug disposal on human health and our ecosystem. In addition, 80% (320/400) of the participants confirmed that, given the option, they would prefer to return the unused or expired drugs to the pharmacy shops from where the medicines were purchased. Conclusion: There is a need to educate drug consumers/general public about safe and proper disposal of unused/ expired medicines. Health-care professionals, governments and policymakers should offer training to educate the general public about Indian regulations for safe disposal of unused/expired medicines.
ABSTRACT
One of the widespread problems of oral health is bruxism and is defined as a parafunctional habit with involuntary grinding and gnashing of the teeth occurring during sleep. However, bruxism is connected to anxiety and stress, but the published literature on bruxism among prison inmates is scanty. Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence of active sleep bruxism and its impact on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) among inmates in Central Penal Institution, Mysore. Materials and Methods: The study was cross sectional and conducted among eligible male inmates at Central Penal Institution, Mysore. The information on active sleep bruxism and OHRQoL was collected using a predesigned structured questionnaire by means of personal interview by a trained investigator. The active sleep bruxism was assessed using the criteria of American Academy of Sleep Medicine and OHRQoL through modified oral health impact profile (OHIP-14). The data analysis was done using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, t-test, analysis of variance, and linear regression model. Results: A total of 212 male inmates aged between 18 and 80 years were considered for the study. The prevalence of active sleep bruxism among the study population was 31.6%. The mean OHIP-14 score was significantly higher (P < 0.001) among the inmates having active sleep bruxism (38.52 ± 12.8) suggesting a high oral health impact as compared to inmates without this disorder (31.67 ± 12). Conclusion: The prevalence of active sleep bruxism was higher among the inmates of penal institution as compared to the general population. The active sleep bruxism had a negative impact on OHRQoL.