Anxiety, depression and stress among medical students

Fernanda Moreira da Silva, Deborah de Farias Lelis, Marcelo Perim Baldo, Thaís de Oliveira Faria Baldo, Luçandra Ramos Espírito Santo

Abstract

This is a cross-sectional and analytical study, carried using a form made available on the Google Forms platform and disseminated through contacts with the social networks of the academic centers of medical courses in Brazil, with the objective is to verify the rates of depression, anxiety and stress in medical students, as well as to evaluate the difference in the prevalence of these disorders in relation to sex. To confirm the hypothesis, a sociodemographic questionnaire and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21), valid and translated in Brazil, were used. 460 students participated, among them 19.30% had anxiety, 44.3% depression and 43.70% stress. Furthermore, 23.20% of women had anxiety, while for men this number was 10.60% (p=0.001), 52% of women were identified with stress, while only 34.80% of men (p<0.001). Still in this sense, women had these disorders with a greater degree of severity when compared to men, p=0.009 and 0.008, respectively. Therefore, this study reinforces the need for interventions aimed at the mental health of these students, by universities, in particular, actions aimed at female vulnerabilities, in order to mitigate psychological suffering and avoid compromising the training of these future doctors.