Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40558117›Full record

ArticleAdvances in respiratory medicine2025

Medication Recommendation, Counseling, and Pricing for Nasal Sprays in German Community Pharmacies: A Simulated Patient Investigation.

Bernhard Langer, Christian Kunow, Tim Dethloff, Sarah George

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Advances in respiratory medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Bernhard LangerDepartment of Health, Nursing, Management, Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Brodaer Straße 2, 17033 Neubrandenburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-8410-5229
Christian KunowDepartment of Health, Nursing, Management, Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Brodaer Straße 2, 17033 Neubrandenburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-2674-0344
Tim DethloffDepartment of Health, Nursing, Management, Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Brodaer Straße 2, 17033 Neubrandenburg, Germany.ORCID 0009-0008-8923-5725
Sarah GeorgeDepartment of Health, Nursing, Management, Neubrandenburg University of Applied Sciences, Brodaer Straße 2, 17033 Neubrandenburg, Germany.ORCID 0009-0006-9205-0073

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

For the self-medication of nasal congestion following a common cold, decongestant nasal sprays can be recommended according to the medicine guidelines. In Germany, these are only available in community pharmacies (CPs) with free pricing. The aim was to analyze the medication recommendation, counseling, and pricing. A covert simulated patient study, internationally recognized as the "gold standard", was conducted in all CPs of two medium-sized cities in north-eastern Germany. Each CP was visited twice (86 visits) with the identical scenario by one female and one male simulated patient. At the beginning, they asked for a nasal spray and, when asked, stated that they had had nasal congestion for three days. Slightly more than half (54.7%, 47/86) of the recommended nasal sprays were free of preservatives. The median counseling score was 2.0 out of 8 points, with a significantly higher score observed for the female SP (

Indexed as

Community Pharmacy ServicesCounselingNasal DecongestantsNasal SpraysPharmaciesAdultCommon ColdCosts and Cost AnalysisFemaleGermanyHumansMalePatient SimulationSelf MedicationNasal DecongestantsNasal Spraysacute rhinosinusitiscommon coldcommunity pharmaciescounselingmedication recommendationnasal sprayspricingrhinitis medicamentosaself-medicationsimulated patient

Identifiers

PMID40558117
PMCPMC12190096

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.