IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/cwf/pcarti/pc202520.html

Self-medication with antibiotics and bacterial resistence: a systematic review

Author

Listed:
  • Medeiros Masculi, Brenda
  • Adrián Estrin, Marcelo

Abstract

Background: Bacterial resistance is one of the major threats to global public health. Among the factors that contribute to its increase, self-medication with antibiotics stands out as a common practice associated with the inappropriate use of these drugs. Material and methods: A systematic review of the scientific literature was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Library, SciELO, and Elsevier databases, including studies published between 2015 and 2025 in Spanish and English. Observational, experimental, and previous review studies analyzing the association between antibiotic self-medication and bacterial resistance were included. Results: The reviewed studies revealed a high prevalence of self-medication in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, mainly involving penicillins and macrolides. The most frequently reported bacteria were Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumoniae, showing a significant increase in multidrug-resistant strains. Conclusion: Self-medication with antibiotics is a key driver in the spread of bacterial resistance. Strengthening control policies, restricting over-the-counter antibiotic sales, and developing community education programs on rational antimicrobial use are essential to reduce this global problem.

Suggested Citation

  • Medeiros Masculi, Brenda & Adrián Estrin, Marcelo, 2025. "Self-medication with antibiotics and bacterial resistence: a systematic review," SAP Primary Care, South American Publishing.
    • Handle: RePEc:cwf:pcarti:pc202520
    DOI: 10.62486/pc202520
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://southam.pub/journals/files/pc/pc202520en.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://southam.pub/journals/files/pc/pc202520es.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.62486/pc202520?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:cwf:pcarti:pc202520. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: South American Publishing Journals Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://southam.pub/journals/pc.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.