Internet gaming disorder and its association with selected psychological problems among medical students

Abstract

Background: Playing games on the internet/smart devices has become an intrinsic part of our daily routine. Students and adolescents are identified as risk groups for Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). Students of professional courses like medicine seem to be at a higher risk of the deleterious effects of IGD, but evidence for it is scarce. Objectives: This study was conducted to find the prevalence of IGD, its risk factors, and its association with common psychological health problems among undergraduate medical students. Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, the calculated sample were chosen through simple random sampling from each batch of undergraduate medical students. A semi-structured, pre-tested, self-assessment questionnaire was used to collect information. IGD was determined through the IGD-20 test scale and psychological problems using the DASS-21 scale. Results: We included 220 students in the final analysis. The prevalence of IGD was 3.2% among the total population and 5.6% among those having risk. Students with IGD had significantly higher body mass indexes compared to those without IGD. A significant proportion of students with IGD had depression (85.7%) (p=0.007). Other psychological problems like anxiety and stress did not show a significant association with IGD in our study. Conclusion: IGD is a newer disease entity, and since the at-risk population for IGD is growing day by day, this may pose a significant public health concern soon.