COVID-19: how did the pandemic influence the quality of medical students' sleep?

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Sleep is considered a cyclical physiological state due to the alternation between sleep and wakefulness that occur in most living beings. It is characterized by five fundamental stages and the total or partial absence of quality nighttime sleep can cause sleep and wake disorders, which are related to damage to the health of the population. Relating the theme to medical students, it is known that this population experiences, since college, the reality of a few hours to sleep and rest. Also, by associating this issue in the current context of COVID-19, it is possible that the quality of sleep in this population has changed. Objective: To identify the prevalence of the occurrence of Sleep Disorders and associated factors among medical students from a higher education institution in the forest region of Minas Gerais. Methods: The research, with a cross-sectional design, was conducted online through a semi-structured questionnaire with social, personal, demographic variables and also using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale and the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index. Results: Of the total of 340 academics invited to participate in the study, 63.8% participated in the survey. 41% of the participants stated that they had a sleep duration per night of less than six hours and in relation to the usual sleep efficiency, 50.7% certified that they have an efficacy of less than 84%, evidencing a high frequency of sleep disorders (94, 9%). Also regarding the analysis of the Pittsburg Scale for Assessment of Sleep Quality, comparing cycles (basic, clinical and internship), 14% of students in the basic cycle need to use medication to sleep 3 or more times a week, as opposed to 7% denounced by the analysis of both the clinical cycle and the internship. About 40% of basic cycle students, 22% of clinical cycle students and 4% of boarding students reported having daytime dysfunction 5 to 6 days a week, such as difficulty staying awake and focused on their daily activities, in as a result of disturbed nights of sleep. As for the Epworth sleepiness scale, only 31.7% of the sample had normal sleep and in 44% of students an abnormal (pathological) sleepiness was identified. Conclusion: It is concluded that the perception of poor sleep quality was high for all years of the medical graduation course. Regarding the comparison of course phases, students in the early years (basic cycle group) reported worse sleep quality and greater daytime dysfunction.