Sociodemographic correlates and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress among a sample of nigerian medical students

A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies exploring prevalence of non-specific anxiety in undergraduate university students

BACKGROUND

Anxiety is a common mental health problem in the general population, and is associated with functional impairment and negative impacts upon quality of life. There has been increased concern about university students' mental health in recent years, with a wide range of non-specific anxiety rates reported worldwide in undergraduate university students. We aimed to explore prevalence of non-specific anxiety in undergraduate university student populations.

METHODS

Four databases were searched to identify studies published between 1980 and 2020 which investigated prevalence of non-specific anxiety in undergraduate university students. Each study's quality was appraised using a checklist. Sub-analyses were undertaken reflecting outcome measure utilized, course of study, location of study, and whether study was before or during the COVID-19 pandemic.

RESULTS

A total of 89 studies - representing approx. 130,090 students-met inclusion criteria. Eighty-three were included in meta-analysis, calculating a weighted mean prevalence of 39.65% (95% CI: 35.72%-43.58%) for non-specific anxiety. Prevalence from diagnostic interview studies ranged from 0.3%-20.8% 12-month prevalence. Prevalence varied by outcome measure used to assess non-specific anxiety, the type of course studied by sample, and by study location. In half the studies, being female was associated with being more likely to have higher non-specific anxiety scores and/or screening above thresholds. Few of the included studies met all quality appraisal criteria.

CONCLUSION

The results suggest that approximately a third of undergraduate students are experiencing elevated levels of non-specific anxiety. Results from sub-analyses have identified some methodological issues that need consideration in appraising prevalence in this population.

Effectiveness of rational emotive behavior therapy in reducing depression among undergraduate medical students

BACKGROUND

Studies reporting the incidence of depression among medical students have been on the increase. This research sought to determine whether rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT) can be applied to help manage depression in Nigerian undergraduate medical students.

METHODS

A randomized pretest/posttest control group design was used in this study. Ninety medical students with depression participated in the study and were assisted using the REBT depression manual. Using a mixed-model repeated measures analysis of variance, the researchers examined the intervention data.

RESULTS

The depressive symptoms and its associated irrational beliefs among medical students in the treatment arm were significantly altered by REBT intervention at posttest and this positive outcome was sustained at follow-up in contrast to the control arm.

CONCLUSION

REBT intervention significantly improves medical students' ability to overcome depression and irrational beliefs. Similar studies could be conducted in a variety of academic settings where these students can be found to expand the findings of this study.

Prevalence of depression and anxiety, and attitudes toward seeking help among first-year pharmacy, medical, and nursing students at a Nigerian university

INTRODUCTION

The first year of university study tends to be particularly challenging and exhausting, especially for students in health sciences. This study aimed to explore the prevalence of anxiety and depression among first-year pharmacy, medicine, and nursing students at a Nigerian university as well as their attitudes toward seeking professional support.

METHODS

This study was a cross-sectional descriptive survey among all first-year pharmacy, medicine, and nursing students. Paper-based self-administered questionnaires were used, and they included the Patient Health Questionnaire, Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale, and Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, and Pearson correlation were used for data analysis.

RESULTS

The study included 522 students (89% response rate). The prevalence of depression among participants was 71.8%, while the prevalence of anxiety was 61.7%. Only 24.9% of the participants expressed willingness to seek professional psychological help. Attitudes toward getting professional care was inversely related to the prevalence of depression (r = -0.155, P = .01) and anxiety (r = -0.098, P = .05). Age, smoking, alcohol intake, and dietary habits were associated with the occurrence of depression and anxiety. No demographic variables were related to the participants' attitudes toward seeking professional care.

CONCLUSIONS

Depression and anxiety symptoms were very common among health science freshmen. However, the vast majority of students were unwilling to seek help. Students' attitudes toward seeking treatment are influenced by the prevalence of depression and anxiety. Therefore, educational interventions on mental health promotion are recommended.

Prevalence and factors associated with depression among medical students in Nigeria

Background

Depression among medical students has been partly attributed to the nature of medical education, and may lead to poor academic and professional adjustment. The objectives of the study were to assess the prevalence of depression and its relationship to socio-demographic and clinical risk factors among medical students of Bayero University in Kano, Nigeria.

Methodology

A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed. Two hundred and seventy-nine medical students were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. The respondents were given a self-reporting questionnaire, which included sociodemographic details and 3-item Oslo Social Support Rating Scale. Depression was assessed using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (7.0).

Results

The prevalence of depression among medical students was 15.1%. Depression was more in females, <22 years, those at the lower level of study, poor social support, family history of depression and history of depression. After logistic regression, only being female (P = 0.008) and history of depression (P = 0.007) differentiated medical students with depression from those with no depression with odds ratio (OR) of 2.88 (95% confidence interval [CI] = [1.31, 6.33]) and OR of 2.79 (95% CI = [1.33, 5.84]), respectively. There was no association between depression and poor financial state (P = 0.175), self-reported academic performance (P = 0.719) and use of psychoactive substances (P = 0.311).

Conclusion

Depression is an important condition among medical students in Nigeria. There is a need to help students with mental health challenges by providing preventive measures, early identification and treatment mechanisms in medical schools in the country.

Depression in Mexican medical students: A path model analysis

Background

Depression is a mental health disorder present in medical students that foster cumulative disadvantages throughout life and that may compromise patient care. Yet, in Mexico there is a dearth of research concerning prediction models for depression in this population.

Methods

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to develop and test a path model analysis of depression in 103 freshmen Mexican medical students ages 18–23 years old selected non-randomly. Anxiety, emotion dysregulation, and coping skills were used as factors influencing depression. Mexican self-report scales were used as assessment measures.

Results

Main results showed that anxiety and emotion dysregulation had a significant direct influence on depression. Emotion dysregulation had a significant direct effect on coping skills and anxiety, while anxiety had a significant direct effect on problem drinking and alcohol problems. Fit indexes obtained indicate an excellent adjustment to data. R square indicates that 53.7% of the variance in depression can be explained by this model.

Limitations

The results are exploratory rather than confirmatory. The sample size was not large enough and the research focused on only Mexican freshmen medical students. Other factors associated to depression in medical students were not considered.

Conclusions

The current research provides unique findings in terms of a model of depression in Mexican medical students through which it is possible to design and implement interventions that decrease depression, thus positively affecting their well-being, their future careers as medical doctors and their abilities to serve the society adequately, especially in the context of Latin American cities.

Addictive use of smartphone, depression and anxiety among female undergraduates in Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Purpose

This study examined the prevalence and relationship between addictive use of smartphones and symptoms of depression and anxiety among female undergraduates.

Design/methodology/approach

Standardized scales were used to measure the addictive use of smartphones, depression and anxiety among 398 female students (mean age 21.75 years, SD = 2.67) at two large higher institutions in southwest Nigeria and were opportunely sampled. Two hypotheses were tested using Spearman's rho and Mann–Whitney U tests.

Findings

The results showed that 1.01% of the respondents were probable smartphone addicts and 17.34% were at-risk, while 14.32% and 16.33% manifested symptoms of anxiety and moderate-to-severe depression, respectively. Depression (r = 0.24, p < 0.01) and anxiety (r = 0.21, p < 0.01) have significant relationship with addictive use of smartphone. Addictive/at-risk smartphone users significantly scored higher on symptoms of depression (average rank of 233.40) than normal smartphone users (average rank of 191.88); U = 9387.50; z = −2.81, p < 0.05; Also, addictive/at-risk smartphone users reported significantly higher level of anxiety (average rank of 229.27) than normal smartphone users (average rank of 192.81); U = 9689.00; z = −2.46, p < 0.05.

Research limitations/implications

Generalizing these results to a clinical setting and other at-risk demographic groups might prove difficult due to the respondents' condition of homogeneity.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that relationships exist between the addictive use of smartphones and symptoms of depression and anxiety among undergraduate students in southwest Nigeria. Clinicians should assess smartphone use in the management of depression and anxiety disorders.

Social implications

University administrators should target prevention and intervention strategies that would assist students to be taught positive ways of using their smartphones.

Originality/value

The study contributes to the body of knowledge by revealing relationships between smartphone addiction and mental health in an African sample.

Mental health and wellbeing of medical students in Nigeria: a systematic review

In addition to the stresses common to medical school training, medical students in Nigeria face additional peculiar contemporary social problems due to income inequality, poverty, insecurity and political instability. These have a direct impact on their mental health and wellbeing. The aim of this study was to systematically review articles reporting on the epidemiology of psychiatric disorders among medical students in Nigeria. Studies were identified using MEDLINE, HINARI, African Journal Online (AJOL) and Google Scholar databases using search terms encompassing psychiatric morbidity amongst medical students. No date restrictions were applied to the search. The pooled prevalence estimate was calculated for each disorder. Psychological distress was present in 25.2% of the students, perceived stress in 60.5%, depression in 33.5% and anxiety in 28.8%. The current use of at least one psychoactive substance was present in up to 44.2%, while 35.5% of all the respondents had experienced one or more forms of abuse during their training as medical students. The prevalence of psychiatric disorders among medical students in Nigeria is high. Positive coping mechanisms such as religiosity, positive reframing and resilience which were identified in this review should be optimized to reduce the burden.