Depressive Symptoms in Medical Students and Their Association with Hormonal and Socioeconomic Variables

Introduction: Depression disables and compromises quality of life, so that its high prevalence in medical students is a relevant problem. It is known that hormonal variables, such as cortisolemia, as well as socioeconomic factors can be related to the onset of depressive symptoms. This study aimed to verify the prevalence of depressive symptoms in medical students at a University Center in Maceió and analyze their correlation with serum cortisol levels, lifestyle and socioeconomic profile. Method: Quantitative, analytical and cross-sectional study of medical students from a private medical school in Maceió. A sample of 122 students participated in the study, which applied the Beck Depression Inventory, socioeconomic questionnaire and serum cortisol dosage. Results: Of the 78 women and 44 men participating in the study, 40 cases of depressive symptoms were identified (32.9%), of which 3 cases had severe depressive symptoms (2.5%), 9 cases had moderate depressive symptoms (7.4%) and 28 had mild depressive symptoms (23.0%). As for the cortisol levels, the mean value obtained was 12.72 µg/dL, with a maximum and minimum value of 29.7 µg/dL and 0.9 µg/dL, respectively. No correlation was found between depressive symptoms and morning serum cortisol levels in this study. Among the explanatory variables analyzed, only religion attained a statistically significant correlation with depressive symptoms, with a prevalence of higher scores in students who did not have a religion. Conclusion: It can be emphasized that there is a high prevalence of depression among medical students. The results obtained in this study show that the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis alteration is not the only etiology associated with the development of depression. In turn, religious practice showed to be statistically significant in relation to the lowest rate of depressive symptoms, revealing itself as a probable protective factor against the development of depression.