Abstract
Students experience different levels of acute and chronic stress during the academic year. Selected salivary biochemical parameters change as a result of stress. Our preliminary study aimed to indicate possible links between alterations in the salivary biochemical parameters (such as cortisol and total antioxidant status) and different accompanying stress levels in dental students during the academic year. The study group consisted of 20 volunteer dental students at the Poznan University of Medical Sciences—both genders, aged 20–26 years. Students were asked to fill in the electronic version of the author’s survey on experiencing and coping with stress. Samples of unstimulated saliva were collected in the morning and late evening at four-time points: in the middle of the academic year, during the examination period, at the beginning of the academic year, and in the middle of the following academic year, together with a determination of currently experienced stress on the Stress Numerical Rating Scale-11. According to the circadian rhythm of cortisol secretion, morning levels of the hormone in saliva were much higher than in the evening. In evening cortisol, significant differences were observed during the studied periods—the highest level was found at the beginning of the academic year. However, the morning cortisol concentrations correlated more strongly with the declared stress levels and showed better predictability for high-stress levels. Salivary morning cortisol could be a potential marker of academic stress levels. Further studies are needed on a larger group to confirm.
Highlights
Stress is regarded as the response of the body to any physical or psychological challenges that disrupt homeostasis
Our preliminary study aimed to indicate possible links between alterations in the selected biochemical parameters of saliva and different accompanying stress levels in dental students during the academic year
The respondents most often coped with stress by talking to their family or friends through entertainment (TV, Internet) and snacking—respectively, 75%, 80%, and 50%
Summary
Stress is regarded as the response of the body to any physical or psychological challenges that disrupt homeostasis. This is expressed by several cognitive, emotional, and behavioural changes to address this challenge [1,2]. Academic stress has been shown to manifest as anxiety, depression, emotional exhaustion, fatigue, gastrointestinal symptoms, and sleeplessness. An adverse effect of stress on educational achievement has been observed [5]. Dental education is considered to be highly demanding academically and clinically [6,7]. It is linked with a high prevalence of psychological stress among students. Dental students present higher levels of stress than the general
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