Poor Quality of Sleep and its Relationship with Depression in First Year Medical Students.

Introduction: High incidence of depression has been reported in undergraduate medical students. Sleep disturbance has been associated with depressive symptoms and higher body mass index (BMI). This study evaluated the relationship between sleep disturbance measured by Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index ( PSQI) and Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS) with BMI and depression measured by Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) in 1st year medical students. Method: Following Institutional Ethics Committee approval, 1st year medical students who volunteered for study and gave written informed consent (n=73) were administered PSQI, ESS & BDI questionnaires after seven months of admission. Height and weight were measured by standard method. Scores of PSQI, BDI and BMI were calculated and their interrelationship was measured statically. Results: Poor quality of sleep (PSQI score greater or equal to five) and depression (BDI score eleven or greater) was seen in majority of students (64 and 60 % respectively). BMI was not significantly correlated with PSQI, ESS or BDI scores .There was significant positive correlation between PSQI and BDI (Pearson correlation, r = 0.410, P < 0.001), higher the BDI scores higher the PSQI scores. Conclusions: Poor sleep quality and depressive symptoms were observed in majority of 1st year medical students. Sleep quality and depressive symptoms were interrelated. Prevention and treatment strategies should target sleep as a factor that can potentially influence the development and course of Depression leading to poor academic performance. There is an urgent need to address this issue. Keywords: PSQI, BDI, Medical students, college students, adolescent health, freshman, freshers