Remedy or cure? Lay beliefs about over-the-counter medicines for coughs and colds.
Remedy or cure? Lay beliefs about over-the-counter medicines for coughs and colds.
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发表时间：
2004-02
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通讯作者：
G. Johnson;C. Helman
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作者：
G. Johnson;C. Helman
背景技术英国每年在治疗咳嗽和感冒的非处方药上花费超过5亿美元。缺乏其药理功效的证据。目的 调查外行人对治疗咳嗽和感冒的非处方药的看法。探讨症状缓解和治愈之间的区别对于普通民众和医疗专业人员是否具有同样的相关性。研究设计 使用定性技术的小型试点研究。背景 英国伯明翰国家卫生服务中心就诊的 11 名患者的各种样本。方法 采用深入的半结构化访谈，包括堆排序和虚构的病例史，来探讨参与者对非处方药对咳嗽和感冒的影响的看法。结果 11 名参与者中有 8 名相信至少一种非处方止咳药（最常见的是治疗胸闷的 Benylin）可以缩短或“治愈”疾病。五名参与者认为他们认识的大多数药物都会加速康复，而不仅仅是缓解症状。结论 外行人普遍混淆药物缓解症状的能力和治愈疾病或加速康复的能力。这种误解可能会影响初级保健咨询的需求。
BACKGROUND Over 500 million is spent in the United Kingdom every year on over-the-counter medicines for coughs and colds. Evidence for their pharmacological efficacy is lacking. AIM To examine lay beliefs about over-the-counter medicines for coughs and colds. To explore whether the distinction between symptom relief and cure has the same relevance to lay people as it does to medical professionals. DESIGN OF STUDY Small pilot study using qualitative techniques. SETTING Variety sample of 11 patients attending the National Health Service walk-in centre, Birmingham, England. METHOD In-depth semi-structured interviews, including pile-sorting and fictional case histories, were used to explore participants' beliefs about the effects of over-the-counter medicines on coughs and colds. RESULTS Eight of the 11 participants believed that at least one over the-counter cough medicine (most frequently Benylin for Chesty Coughs) could shorten, or "cure", an illness. Five participants thought that the majority of the medicines that they recognised would speed recovery rather than just relieve symptoms. CONCLUSIONS There is a common confusion in the lay person's mind between the ability of a medicine to relieve symptoms, and its ability to cure a disease or to hasten recovery. This misunderstanding may affect the demand for primary care consultations.