Use of retail pharmacy for common cold preparations in urban Harare

The study was undertaken to estimate the most commonly utilised over-the-counter common cold medications in ten randomly sampled retail pharmacies in urban Harare. Data was collected prospectively with the aid of a purpose built ad-hoc questionnaire. The results showed that ASAFEN is the most commonly sold tablet formulation of common cold preparations and HISTALIX is the most frequently sold liquid dosage form. A review of the active ingredients in these formulations revealed that some of them are incorporated in subtherapeutic doses. The efficacy of these preparations is debatable. Children in the age group of 6 months to 10 years used mostly the liquid formulations while adults used both the liquid and solid dosages. Significantly (P < 0.05), more males than females bought common cold preparations.