Use of OTC medication at any time during pregnancy by ATC level, indication for use and region (n=9459)*†
| OTC medication use, overall and by drug groups | REGION | Total n=9459 n (%) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Europe n=3201 n (%) | Northern Europe n=2820 n (%) | Eastern Europe n=2342 n (%) | North America n=533 n (%) | South America n=346 n (%) | Australia n=217 n (%) | ||
| OTC painkillers, total | 1714 (53.5) | 1773 (62.9) | 734 (31.3) | 284 (53.3) | 127 (36.7) | 151 (69.9) | 4783 (50.6) |
| By drug group | |||||||
| Paracetamol (including combinations) (N02BE) | 1655 (51.7) | 1735 (61.5) | 630 (26.9) | 263 (49.3) | 87 (25.1) | 146 (67.3) | 4516 (47.7) |
| Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (M01A) | 70 (2.2) | 182 (6.5) | 68 (2.9) | 40 (7.5) | 59 (17.1) | 7 (3.2) | 426 (4.5) |
| Acetylsalicylic acid (including combinations) (N02BA) | 7 (0.2) | 11 (0.4) | 32 (1.4) | 2 (0.4) | 2 (0.6) | 1 (0.5) | 55 (0.6) |
| Metamizole (N02BB02) | – | 6 (0.2) | 31 (1.3) | 1 (0.2) | 12 (3.5) | – | 50 (0.5) |
| OTC antacids, total | 1011 (31.6) | 883 (31.3) | 583 (24.9) | 129 (24.2) | 48 (13.9) | 76 (35.0) | 2730 (28.9) |
| By drug group | |||||||
| Antacids (aluminium, salts combinations, antiflatulents) | 472 (14.7) | 550 (19.5) | 508 (21.7) | 47 (8.8) | 36 (10.4) | 54 (24.9) | 1667 (17.6) |
| Alginic acid complex/sucralfate/bismuth (A02BX) | 606 (18.9) | 421 (14.9) | 87 (3.7) | 4 (0.8) | 1 (0.3) | 17 (7.8) | 1136 (12.0) |
| H2 receptor antagonists (A02BA) | 20 (0.6) | 20 (0.7) | 16 (0.7) | 57 (10.1) | 10 (2.9) | 17 (7.8) | 137 (1.4) |
| Antacids with calcium (A02AC) | 23 (0.7) | 12 (0.4) | 10 (0.4) | 69 (12.9) | 2 (0.6) | 10 (4.6) | 126 (1.3) |
| Proton pump inhibitors (A02BC) | 38 (1.2) | 52 (1.8) | – | 10 (1.9) | 2 (0.6) | 5 (0.3) | 107 (1.1) |
| OTC nasal sprays/drops, total | 272 (8.5) | 742 (26.3) | 451 (19.3) | 35 (6.6) | 7 (2.0) | 14 (6.5) | 1521 (16.1) |
| By drug group | |||||||
| Sympathomimetic nasal decongestants (R01AA/R01BB) | 204 (6.4) | 683 (24.2) | 365 (15.6) | 20 (3.8) | 3 (0.9) | 4 (1.8) | 1279 (13.5) |
| Nasal corticosteroids (R01AD) | 31 (1.0) | 49 (1.7) | 12 (0.5) | 5 (0.9) | 2 (0.6) | 10 (4.6) | 109 (1.2) |
| Nasal immunostimulants (low-dose interferon) (L03A) | – | – | 28 (1.2) | – | – | – | 28 (0.3) |
| OTC laxatives, total | 240 (7.5) | 227 (8.0) | 237 (10.1) | 50 (9.4) | 8 (2.3) | 19 (8.8) | 781 (8.3) |
| By drug group | |||||||
| Osmotically acting laxatives (A06AD) | 159 (5.0) | 171 (6.1) | 197 (8.4) | 2 (0.4) | 2 (0.6) | 8 (3.7) | 539 (5.7) |
| Contact laxatives (A06AB) | 28 (0.9) | 44 (1.6) | 18 (0.8) | 7 (1.3) | 6 (1.7) | 2 (0.9) | 105 (1.1) |
| Enemas (A06AG) | 3 (0.1) | 25 (0.9) | 34 (1.5) | 4 (0.8) | – | 2 (0.9) | 68 (0.7) |
| Softeners, emollients (A06AA) | 8 (0.2) | – | – | 38 (7.1) | – | 6 (2.8) | 52 (0.5) |
| OTC antinauseants, total | 263 (8.2) | 273 (9.7) | 41 (1.8) | 60 (11.3) | 28 (8.1) | 40 (18.4) | 705 (7.5) |
| By drug group | |||||||
| First generation antihistamines (R06A) | 141 (4.4) | 256 (9.1) | 7 (1.5) | 55 (10.3) | 5 (1.4) | 5 (2.3) | 469 (5.0) |
| Metoclopramide/domperidone/bromopride (A03FA) | 113 (3.5) | 5 (0.2) | 18 (0.8) | 2 (0.4) | 19 (5.5) | 27 (12.4) | 184 (1.9) |
| Total OTC medication use | 2163 (67.6) | 2155 (76.4) | 1347 (57.5) | 342 (64.2) | 156 (45.1) | 168 (77.4) | 6331 (66.9) |
*Countries are grouped into regions as shown in figure 1.
†Sums of percentages do not add up to total medication use as only most common medication groups are presented. Rates do not include mineral supplements, vitamins, iron and herbal or complementary medicine products.
Total use estimates of the main OTC categories are presented in italics.
ATC, Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical; OTC, over-the-counter medications.