Badzi Caroline D, Ackumey Mercy M
Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Legon.
Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Legon.
Ghana Med J. 2017 Dec;51(4):156-163.
Analgesics also known as painkillers are widely used for pain relief. There are severe health implications associated with excessive use of analgesics. This paper examines factors influencing the use of analgesics among construction workers in the Ga-East Municipality (GEM) of the Greater Accra region of Ghana.
This is a cross-sectional study involving 206 construction workers randomly sampled from 7 construction sites in the GEM. A structured questionnaire was used to elicit responses on knowledge of analgesics, types of analgesics used and factors influencing the use of analgesics. Chi-square test analysis was used to examine factors influencing analgesic use.
The majority of workers were aged between 15 to 44 years (89.8%) and 51.9 percent of respondents had completed Junior high school. Many respondents (68.0%) used Brand 1 a locally manufactured analgesic with paracetamol, aspirin and caffeine as the active ingredients and 31.6 percent of respondents had no knowledge of possible side effects of continuous use of analgesics. Chi square analysis showed that age was significantly associated with use of analgesics (p<0.01). Knowledge of the types of analgesics, dosage and side effects did not influence use (p>0.05). Television and radio advertisements influenced use of analgesics (p<0.01).
Knowledge on analgesic use and knowledge of probable serious side effects was inadequate. Pharmacists and chemists involvement in education of clients of the side effects of analgesics is highly recommended to minimise misuse. The Food and Drugs Authority should regulate the proliferation of advertisements for analgesics in the media.
None declared.
镇痛药又称止痛药，广泛用于缓解疼痛。过度使用镇痛药会对健康造成严重影响。本文研究了加纳大阿克拉地区加东市（GEM）建筑工人使用镇痛药的影响因素。
这是一项横断面研究，从GEM的7个建筑工地随机抽取206名建筑工人。使用结构化问卷来获取有关镇痛药知识、使用的镇痛药类型以及影响镇痛药使用的因素的回答。采用卡方检验分析来研究影响镇痛药使用的因素。
大多数工人年龄在15至44岁之间（89.8%），51.9%的受访者完成了初中教育。许多受访者（68.0%）使用品牌1，这是一种当地生产的镇痛药，有效成分是对乙酰氨基酚、阿司匹林和咖啡因，31.6%的受访者不知道持续使用镇痛药可能产生的副作用。卡方分析表明，年龄与镇痛药的使用显著相关（p<0.01）。对镇痛药类型、剂量和副作用的了解并未影响其使用（p>0.05）。电视和广播广告影响了镇痛药的使用（p<0.01）。
关于镇痛药使用的知识以及对可能严重副作用的了解不足。强烈建议药剂师和化学家参与对客户进行镇痛药副作用的教育，以尽量减少误用。食品药品管理局应规范媒体上镇痛药广告的泛滥。
未声明。
