Prevalence of depression among Libyan medical students

Abstract Introduction: Psychological stress is a common psychiatric disorder in medical students and sometimes is associated with depression. Students at university usually met a great pressure that they face in their study life and to the hard circumstances in the everyday life. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of depression and stress among university medical students in Libya. Materials and methods: Data was collected by three different questionnaires: the first questionnaire is 6-ITEM Kutcher Adolescent Depression Scale (KADS), the second questionnaire is Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) which are used to diagnose and to assess the severity of depression. The third questionnaire is a simplified self-scoring test for evaluating stress and tension levels. The three questionnaires have all been distributed to the medical sciences students at University of Tripoli in March and May, 2019. According to the registered students in the academic year, 2018/2019, the sample size was composed of 170 students. Results: The major finding of screening revealed that 45% of the total students suffering from depression during their study. This high prevalence composed of mild and moderate type of depression among the students (45% and 25%, respectively). On the other hand, about 40% and 50% of the students have identified as mild and moderate stress, respectively. About 10% of the students have detected as severe stress. Conclusions: This study indicates a high prevalence of mild and moderate depression among medical university students in Libya. Results suggest that university mental health services and programs addressing the students are highly recommended.