Dados do Trabalho

Título

Association between headache, excessive daytime sleepiness and self-medication in dental students

Introdução

Headache is a common problem among dental students, often exacerbated by heavy academic workloads and stress. This condition can contribute to poor sleep quality, resulting in excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). To alleviate symptoms, many students resort to self-medication, a practice that, although offering temporary relief, can increase health risks.

Objetivo

To evaluate the association between headache, EDS and self-medication in dentistry students.

Métodos

This is an observational study with a cross-sectional design, approved by the Research Ethics Committee under opinion: 5,292,357. The sample consisted of 253 students from the first to the tenth period. Students who were undergoing any type of treatment, under medical supervision, for headaches or sleep disorders were excluded. Data collection was performed through the Google Forms digital platform using the following questionnaires: Sociodemographic, Migraine Disability Assessment Test (MIDAS) and the Self-medication Questionnaire. To evaluate the association between two categorical variables, Pearson's Chi-square test was used, with a significance level of 5%.

Resultados

The students interviewed were between 18 and 35 years old, with the majority between 20 and 23 years old (56.5%) and female (75.1%). EDS was observed in 54.2% of the students; 55.7% had headaches, self-medication was reported by 63.9% and approximately half of the respondents (50.6%) and approximately 42.3% slept less than 6 hours per night. Headache was the most reported reason/disease for self-medication (89.4%), with analgesics/antipyretics (89.4%), antihistamines/antihistamines (76.4%) and anti-inflammatories (75.5%) being the most commonly used medications. Headache was associated with age group (0.037) and sex (p < 0.003), with the probability of presenting headache being 2.4 times higher for females and 2.5 times higher for the age group of 20 to 23 years old. No significant associations were observed between headache and EDS and self-medication (p > 0.05).

Conclusões

The prevalence of headache was considered high among university students, being more frequent in women and in the age group of 20 to 23 years. However, no significant association was found between headache, EDS and the use of self-medication.

Palavras -chave

Self Medication. Disorders of Excessive Somnolence. Headache. Dentistry.