Risks of Increased Access to Over-The-Counter Medicines May Outweigh Benefits

Experts have warned that the risks of increasing access to over-the-counter medicines may outweigh the benefits.

The controls on prescription-only medicines are relaxed when they are made more freely available. Although there are benefits to making medications over-the-counter, there are also problems.

A patient who uses an inappropriate over-the-counter medicine can actually worsen their condition. And there are no prescribers to reinforce instructions for safe use.

The safety of over-the-counter medicines should be continually reviewed in order to prevent adverse effects.


Sources:

* Eurekalert March 27, 2008