Sociodemographic and educational factors associated with mental health disorders in medical students of clinical years: A multicenter study in Peru.

OBJECTIVE: To identify sociodemographic and educational factors associated with mental health disorders in Peruvian medical students in clinical years. METHODS: Cross-sectional study. We surveyed students from 24 Peruvian medical schools. We defined negative perception of educational environment as having a Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure score below 100 points; we defined anxiety and depression as having more than 4 points on the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scales, respectively. Poisson regression with robust variance was used to assess the association between negative perception of educational environment and mental health alterations. RESULTS: Among the 808 participants, the prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms was 77.6% and 67.3%, respectively. Negative perception of the educational environment was 31.6%. The factors associated with anxiety were being male (PR = 0.95, 95% CI:0.91-0.98), previous medical condition (Prevalence ratios PR = 1.10, 95% CI:1.05-1.16), previous diagnosis of coronavirus disease 2019 (PR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.93-0.94), being from highlands (PR = 1.11, 95% CI: 1.05-1.16), studying at a national university (PR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.88-0.92), and negative perception of the educational environment (PR = 1.04, 95% CI: 1.03-1.05), while factors associated with depression were being male (PR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.93-0.95), previous medical condition (PR = 1.12, 95% CI: 1.08-1.17), type of university (national) (PR = 0.95, 95% CI: 0.95-0.96), and negative perception of the educational environment (PR = 1.11, 95% CI: 1.07-1.16). CONCLUSION: We found evidence that during the COVID-19 pandemic anxiety and depression are prevalent among Peruvian medical students. Sociodemographic factors and negative perception of educational environment were associated with the presence of these conditions.

A cross-sectional study to assess the level of satisfaction with virtual education in Peruvian medical students.

Objectives: Education has totally changed in the context of the pandemic. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to evaluate the factors associated with the level of satisfaction with virtual education in Peruvian medical students during COVID-19. Methods: Analytical and cross-sectional study, based on an online survey of students nationwide. We use previously validated instruments to measure the level of satisfaction and stress (EPP-10-c) of students with virtual education. For the associated factors, adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) were estimated using Poisson regression. Results: Of the 1,878 students surveyed, the median age was 21 years, 57.8% (1,086) were women, 34.8% (654) had a high level of satisfaction with virtual education and 10.7% (202) presented high levels of stress. The factors associated with a low level of satisfaction were attending the fifth year of study, the partial and non-virtual adaptation of the university to virtual education, and a high level of stress. On the other hand, the factors associated with a high level of satisfaction were the education platform used and the study method used. Conclusion: Seven out of 10 students presented a low level of satisfaction with virtual education, 1 out of 10 presented a high level of stress. The factors associated with the low level of satisfaction were attending the fifth year of study, the non-virtual and partial adaptation of the university to virtual education, and the high level of stress.

[Prevalence and factors associated with eating disorders in Peruvian Human Medicine students in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: a multicentre study]. / Prevalencia y factores del trastorno de conducta alimentaria en estudiantes de Medicina Humana del Perú en el contexto de la pandemia de COVID-19: estudio multicéntrico.

INTRODUCTION: Eating disorders (ED) are serious conditions that have diverse consequences, associated with high morbidity and mortality: Among the factors associated with their development are, being female, and stress, which increased during the pandemic, and was higher in medical students. Our objective was to identify the prevalence and factors associated with ED in medical students. METHODS: Cross-sectional study, conducted with an online questionnaire, between January 1 and 31, 2021, in 22 universities, using the Eating Disorder Scale (EAT-26) and the Family Communication Scale (FCS). Generalized logistic regressions were used to identify the association between variables. RESULTS: A total of 1224 participants were recruited, and the prevalence was 12.5%. Associated factors included a poor perception of health in 34.3%, having a family and/or social environment member with an eating disorder in 21.7%, and medium or low satisfaction with family communication in 57.3% and 34.9% respectively, in addition to the academic year, dieting, concern for body image and the perception of inadequate eating. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, 1-2 out of 10 Human Medicine students had an ED. The associated factors that influenced development of the condition included a fair or poor perception of health, the academic year completed, and medium or low satisfaction with family communication.