Prevalência da utilização de medicamentos de uso contínuo em estudantes do ensino superior.

Abstract

The use of medication among young adults, who generally characterize the university population, is a common practice and medical prescription contributes significantly to consumption. Continuous-use medications are commonly indicated for chronic conditions and are often used for a long period of time, with no set end date. A better knowledge about the health of university students can be obtained from the characterization of medication consumption by this public. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of continuous use of medication in higher education students. This study is characterized as cross-sectional and is part of the project entitled “Monitoring the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in on-site higher education students at the University of Santa Cruz do Sul”. The research was divided into 2 stages, during the second semester of 2021, where they were selected through a random draw among students in face-to-face classes at the University of Santa Cruz do Sul (UNISC), in which they answered a self-administered questionnaire. During the period in which the research took place, only a few courses were authorized to have face-to-face classes, according to the protocols of the government of Rio Grande do Sul, being mainly courses in the health area. After analyzing the data, a sample of 893 participants was obtained, with a higher prevalence of females (70.77%), the mean age was 22.4 years and 72.12% were attending some degree in the area of health. The prevalence of continuous use of medication was 31.53% among university students from different undergraduate courses. Females were more prevalent due to the use of oral contraceptives. Among the individuals who used continuous medication, the highest prevalence was the medication indicated for the nervous system (1st level of ATC group N), which accounted for 45.69% of the sample. It was concluded that the use of continuous medication was frequent among students, with those indicated for the nervous system being the most prevalent.