Worldwide, since self-medication is a fairly common practice, it is also considered an important public health problem. Prevalence ratIOs vary from country to country, low and middle income countries having higher risks of antimicrobial self-medication. In dental care, the main reason for self-medication is pain (toothache), people usually resorting to analgesics and antibiotics. Many individuals also use various home remedies that could lead to a series of complications. Furthermore, when selfmedicating for dental issues, a high percentage of individuals are unaware of what dose they should take, for how long, or what side effects are possible. As a consequence, there is a need to better educate the general public about the use of medication (especially antibiotics) in self-care.
Keywords:- children
- dentistry
- odontophobic
- over-the-counter drugs
- psychotherapies
- self-medication