Knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antibiotic usage among residents of Kajang, Malaysia and association with side effect

The increase usage of antibiotic without appropriate guidelines will cause side effects, resistance and adverse drug events. The bacterial resistance to antibiotic is widely spread and emerged at dangerous level which becomes global threat to public health. Public knowledge, attitude, practices is important to prevent malfunction use of antibiotic that will cause antibiotic resistance and other side effects. This study can be key driver to government to improve educational intervention to prevent antibiotics resistance. A self­ administered questionnaire was using in this cross-sectional study involving 365 respondents at public area. Descriptive and Chi-square test analysis were used in data analysis. Total respondents rate was 91.2 %. The equal distribution was seen in this study between respondents who using and not using any kind if antibiotics in past year which accounted 48.8 % and 51.2 % respectively. There also was approximately balance distribution of the respondents who were aware or not about antibiotic campaigns in Malaysia. Almost 41.2 % of those agreed that antibiotics were use to treat bacteria also agreed that antibiotics were use to treat virus. Sixty percent (55.6 %) of respondents believed that antibiotics were effectives against cough and cold. More than half of total of the respondents were less likely to have the idea about unnecessary use of antibiotics can lead to resistance (61.1 %). Nearly fifty percent of the respondents would stop the antibiotics treatment when symptoms of infection are improving and replied to the incorrect answer regarding doctor often prescribe antibiotic because they expect it (51.5 %). Future effective, organized and structural public educational program should be more establish to improve the proper use of antibiotics.