USE OF OTC DRUGS IS COMMON IN YOUNG CHILDREN.

Over-the-counter (OTC) medications can cause side effects and drug interactions, but their use is often not mentioned during patient histories. A national survey of the mothers of 8145 three-year-old children shows that OTC medication use is common even at this young age.

The children were a nationally representative sample identified through follow-up of subjects in the 1988 National Maternal and Infant Health Survey. During telephone or personal interviews, mothers reported that 54 percent of the children had received some OTC medication in the last 30 days. The most commonly used medications were Tylenol and cough or cold medicines (each used by 35 percent), followed by other analgesic or antipyretic drugs (4 percent), antidiarrheal medic…