Depression, anxiety, stress, and satisfaction of medical students in relation to income and body mass index

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of students' income and body mass index (BMI) with the level of depression, anxiety, stress, and academic satisfaction. Methods: A cross-sectional study with distribution of online Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale questionnaire online to medical students in different universities of Saudi Arabia. In addition, they filled out a predesigned pro forma that contained sociodemographic characteristics and satisfaction status regarding lectures, practical, staff, and examinations. A total of 351 participants completed the study. Students were asked about various academic issues and assessed by a three-point Likert scale (satisfied, undecided, and unsatisfied). Results: The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in students with a father's monthly income of <3000 US Dollars was 72.4% (n = 79), 83.4% (n = 91), and 63.3% (n = 69), respectively. Furthermore, the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in students with a father's monthly income between 3000-5000 US Dollars was 71.5% (n = 73), 74.5% (n = 76), and 48.0% (n = 49) respectively. As for the students with a father's monthly income >5000 US Dollars had a prevalence of 62.1% (n = 87), 71.4% (n = 100), and 48.5% (n = 68) for depression, anxiety, and stress respectively. Hence, it was noted that the prevalence was higher in students with a father's monthly income <3000 US Dollars in all categories (depression P = 0.056 which was marginal, anxiety P = 0.009, and stress P = 0.050).. 46.8% (n = 51) of students with a father's monthly income <3000 US Dollars, 32.4% (n = 33) of students with a father's monthly income between 3000 and 5000 US Dollars, and 30.7% (n = 43) of students with a father's monthly income >5000 showed an extremely severe anxiety score. It showed that the moderate degree of depression with mean total depression score of students with a father's monthly income <3000 was 17.7 ± 11.7. It showed a severe degree of anxiety with a mean total anxiety score of 18.4 ± 11.4, and a moderate degree of stress with a mean total stress score of 19.1 ± 10.4. The prevalence of depression 69.3% (n = 172), anxiety 77.4% (n = 192), and stress 54.8% (n = 136) in students with BMI <25 was higher than in students with BMI ≥25 65.0% (n = 67), 72.8% (n = 75), and 48.5% (n = 50) with no statistically significant difference (P = 0.161, P = 0.433, and 0.572), respectively. It showed that 37.5% (n = 93) of students with BMI <25 were extremely severely anxious while students with BMI ≥25 were 33.0% (n = 34). Conclusions: The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in medical students with low father monthly income was significantly high. The prevalence of severe anxiety in all groups needs more attention from the medical college's higher authorities.