ReviewPublic health in practice (Oxford, England)2026
Interventions to address improper disposal practices of unused and expired household medications: A systematic review.
Review in Public health in practice (Oxford, England), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective: The improper disposal of unused and expired medications poses a significant threat of environmental contamination, public health risks, and economic burdens. Therefore, interventions to address this issue are necessary. This review aims to identify the effectiveness of interventions in improving the proper disposal of unused and expired household medications. Study design: Systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Methods: The review was conducted in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. A comprehensive literature search was conducted using the PubMed and Scopus databases until July 2024 for randomized controlled studies evaluating interventions to improve household medication disposal practices. No publication year restrictions were applied. Two reviewers independently screened the studies, extracted the data, and assessed the outcomes. A qualitative data synthesis was employed. Results: Of 112 retrieved articles, nine met the inclusion criteria and were eligible for analysis. Four studies utilized home medication disposal kits, one study employed a medication take-back program, and two studies used educational materials such as leaflets or videos. The remaining two studies employed a combination of interventions: one integrated a pamphlet with incentives, whereas the other provided medication disposal bags alongside an informative web-based resource. Both the medication take-back program intervention and the combination of medication disposal bags with web resources demonstrated consistent effectiveness. Conclusions: The interventions implemented had variable effects in terms of both direction and extent on improving the proper disposal of unused and expired household medications. To achieve consistent and positive outcomes, developing interventions that include personalized feedback is essential for enhancing the proper disposal practices of these medications.
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Registered trials
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.