Parental Awareness Towards Antibiotic Use for Upper Respiratory Tract Infections in Children

The study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices of antibiotic use among parents of children with upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). Out of 384 participants, 49.74% were between 30 and 40 years old, with a male preponderance. Most parents did not know whether antibiotics should be given to all children who develop fever, agreed that most URTIs are self-limited, and were unaware of the side effects of antibiotics. Most parents would not request an antibiotic prescription from a doctor, and 87.7% strictly followed their doctors’ recommendations. Major reasons for self-medication were perception of URTI as a simple problem and unaffordability of costs for doctor visits and treatment. The study concluded that awareness programs targeting parents and legislative actions for antibiotic sales can help improve rational use of medicines and contribute to the prevention of AMR.