Assessment and comparison of sleep patterns among medical and non-medical undergraduates of Karachi: A cross-sectional study - SPECIAL REPORT

To assess and compare patterns, habits and quality of sleep in undergraduate medical and non-medical students. The cross-sectional study was conducted from February to March, 2018, at Dow Medical College, Karachi, and Pakistan Air Force-Karachi Institute of Economics and Technology. Data was collected by self-reported questionnaires. Sleep quality of individuals was assessed using Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index. Data was analysed using SPSS 21. Of the 245 subjects, 137(55%) were medical students and 108(45%) were non-medical. Overall, 101(41.2%) subjects aid 8 hours of sleep was sufficient for them; 153(62.4%) reported daytime sleeping; and 168(68.5%) did not take naps. The duration of nap was >30 minutes in 118(48%) students. Factors affecting sleep were cited as electronic media 132(53.9%), caffeine 42(17.1%) and stress 126(51.4%). Of the total, 161(65.7%) subjects had poor sleep quality. There was no significant difference between medical and non-medical students (p>0.05). Majority of medical and non-medical undergraduate students were poor sleepers.