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Open Access
CC BY 4.0 · Int Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2024; 28(02): e247-e254
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1776731
Original Research

Sleep Patterns and Associated Insomnia in Junior and Senior Medical Students: A Questionnaire-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Authors

  • Ghady Dhafer Alshehri 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Ahlam Ahmed Almahmoudi 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Afnan Abdullah Alsaif 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Bashayer Hassan Shalabi 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Hana Zuhair Fatani 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Fatima Hassan Aljassas 

    2   Department of Medicine, Division of Sleep Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Dania Wazen Alsulami 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Faris Alhejaili 

    2   Department of Medicine, Division of Sleep Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

  • Faisal Zawawi 

    1   Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Funding The author(s) received no financial support for the research.
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Abstract

Introduction Appropriate quality and quantity of sleep are critical for good mental health, optimal body functioning, memory consolidation, and other cognitive processes.

Objectives To evaluate the sleeping patterns of medical students in Saudi Arabia and their relationships with psychological distress.

Methods This was a cross-sectional, self-administered, questionnaire-based study. The study included medical students from a university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS) were used to evaluate the prevalence and burden of inadequate sleep quality and insomnia in the participants.

Results The majority of the participants was women (76.6%). Furthermore, most participants (96.2%) were aged between 18 and 24 years old, while 54.4% of the participants were in their senior year. According to the AIS scores (mean: 15.85 ± 4.52), 98.7% of the participants exhibited insomnia symptoms. The PSQI scores (mean: 9.53 ± 5.67) revealed that 70.5% of the participants had poor sleep quality. Students in their fundamental and junior years had significantly higher percentages of insomnia symptoms and poor sleep quality compared with students in their senior years.

Conclusion The prevalence of insomnia and poor sleep quality is high among medical students. Therefore, appropriate strategies for early detection and intervention are warranted.

Keywords

Athens Insomnia Scale - Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index - medical students - sleep quality


Publication History

Received: 30 April 2023

Accepted: 25 June 2023

Article published online:
05 February 2024

© 2024. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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