Unnecessary GI medication utilisation
We investigated whether the outpatient prescriptions of study subjects for the common cold included any GI medications and estimated the percentage of their unnecessary use. Compounds regarded as GI medications in this study were antiulcer drugs (antacids, H2-receptor blockers, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), and mucosal protective agents) and GI tract regulators (GI tract stimulants, anticholinergics, and others; Appendix II).