Assessment of level of stress and its correlation with blood pressure in medical students
Journal Title: National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology - Year 2018, Vol 8, Issue 6
Abstract
Background: Hypertension is a global problem which can lead to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications. Medical education can impose significant psychological stress on undergraduates. Considerable degree of psychological morbidity has been reported among medical students ranging from stress, interpersonal problems and suicidal ideation to psychiatric disorders and they tend to have greater psychological distress than general population. Stress is one of the factors known to cause variation in blood pressure (BP). Maintaining normal BP is essential for well-being of an individual. Aims and Objectives: To assess the level of stress and to correlate stress level with BP in medical students. Materials and Methods: BP was recorded using sphygmomanometer, in the sitting posture after 5 min of rest (n = 92). Three readings were taken, and the average was considered. The medical student stressor questionnaire (MSSQ) is a validated instrument used to identify sources of stress in medical students. The items in MSSQ represent 20 possible sources of stress in medical students identified from the literature grouped into six main domains. Data collected were analyzed using SPSS Version 23. Descriptive statistics of the study participants were done. Pearson correlation was done to find the correlation between stress domains and BP levels. Results: Medical students have mild to moderate degree of stress. There was a statistically significant correlation between diastolic BP (DBP), academic-related stressors (ARS), and group activities related stressor (GARS) (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Among the six domains of MSSQ, ARS and GARS have shown significant correlation with DBP. Hence, proactive measures have to be taken to address the issue of stress in medical students and to prevent the progression of elevated BP to hypertensive levels, to prevent complications related to hypertension for well-being of the students.
Authors and Affiliations
Bharath Thimmappa, Vijaya Vageesh Yogeeshwaran
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP490400
- DOI 10.5455/njppp.2018.8.0205209022018
- Views 77
- Downloads 0
The pattern of unmet need of contraceptive use in married couples attending a tertiary care hospital in Eastern India
Background: Knowledge regarding contraceptives and practice of their use or nonuse decide the health outcomes of married women. There appears to be an unmet need of contraceptive use making a gap between the reproductive...
Condition of inflammation mediators and antioxidant protection system for endometriosis genitalis in women of reproductive age
Background: The paper presents the data on a condition and a role of inflammation mediators and the antioxidant protection system in blood plasma for endometriosis genitalis (EG) in women of reproductive age. The materia...
Sahaja yoga meditation as a tool to enhance aging pulmonary functions
Background: Aging is of recent origin. It is not a disease. Most of the age-related functional changes in the respiratory system result from three physiologic events-progressive decreases in the compliance of the chest w...
Thyroid function tests in polycystic ovarian syndrome
Background: Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or polycystic ovarian disease (PCOD) is the most common endocrine problem in young females with chronic anovulatory cycles occurring in 5-10% of reproductive women. PCOS is...
Influence of sawdust on peak expiratory flow rate in sawmill workers of central India working in unprotected environment and its correlation with duration of exposure
Background: Exposure to wood-dust has long been linked with a variety of adverse health effects. Aims and Objective: This study was designed to investigate the effects of saw-dust on peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and...