An Evaluation of the Safe and Effective Use of Ibuprofen Over-the-counter from Community Pharmacy: A Systematic Review on Adverse Drug Reactions and Management

Abstract

Over the counter (OTC) medications such as readily available NSAIDs (ibuprofen) have been seen to cause serious adverse reactions either due to lack of knowledge by consumers or lack of initiatives by community pharmacists on creating awareness about such medications. This study sought to determine safe and effective use of OTC ibuprofen from community pharmacy. Adopting a systematic literature review approach, databases such as the University of Brighton Online Library and PubMed and Google Scholar were used. Both search terms and Boolean operators were used in combination that resulted in three records that met the inclusion criteria. The findings of this study identified a lack of knowledge about ibuprofen as the largest impediment to the effective and safe use of this medication. Also, the most common adverse drug reaction (ADR) for the use of ibuprofen was gastrointestinal (GI) reaction, although others were also discovered.