Prevalence and Causes of Stress in Newly Joined Medical and Dental Students Varies with Gender

Effect of academic stress, educational environment on academic performance & quality of life of medical & dental students; gauging the understanding of health care professionals on factors affecting stress: A mixed method study

“…The results of our study regarding the high prevalence of academic stress in medical and dental students have been supported by the study conducted in the USA and at King Saud University, KSA where the prevalence of academic stress among students was 30% and 63%, respectively, affecting the academic performance of the students [ 1 , 2 ]. In our study, males had more academic stress than females which is contrary to the results of another study, in which there was no significant gender difference [ 11 ]. A systematic review identified 23 studies that evaluated the relationship between academic assessment and psychological distress among female medical students which is in line with our research findings [ 28 ].…”

“…In our study, students of pre-clinical and clinical years have perceived an equal amount of academic stress which is in contrast to the findings of another study, which found a high prevalence of stress in students of pre-clinical years [ 11 ]. Similarly, the findings of a study conducted in Ghana confirmed that the students in senior high schools with a pleasant physical environment perform better which is contrary to our research findings [ 37 ].…”

“…No one is shielded from stress, but it is more prevalent in medical and dental students. The major contributing factors are an unbalanced lifestyle and study overload [ 11 ].…”