Assessment of perceived stress and stressors among medical and dental undergraduate students

Background: Stress is an inseparable part of life in current scenario. Stress has made its presence very obvious among students also. Early detection and prevention of stressors may inhibit the emergence of mental illnesses in productive population. Objective: To assess perceived stress using perceived stress scale (PSS) to recognize the level of stress and related aspects like sleep disturbance and anxiety. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted amongst MBBS and BDS students of medical and dental colleges of Udaipur, Rajasthan. Data was collected by pre-validated online questionnaire comprised of perceived stress scale and sleep related questions over a duration of 2 months (May – June 2018). Data of 171 students of medical and dental colleges of all semesters was obtained for statistical analysis. Results: Total of 171 students responded out of 300 students i.e. 57% response rate of online questionnaire. Out of total respondents 137 were medical and 34 were dental students. Male female ratio came out to be 1:1.3. In terms of perceived stress majority students (80.1%) perceived moderate stress, low stress was perceived by 11.1% students while 8.8% students felt high level of stress. Conclusion: Medical students perceived higher degree of stress and showed much more sleep related problems. Inclusion of stress relievers and early interventionmay play significant role in inhibition of depression and mental health issues