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BACKGROUND: Stress significantly affects both the physical and emotional health of individuals, particularly students in health-related fields. Medical students in Brazil face unique challenges due to the demanding nature of their studies, especially during assessment periods, which heighten academic pressure. These pressures often lead to poor coping strategies and mental health concerns. It is crucial to understand the complex dynamics of stress within medical education to develop strategies that improve student well-being and promote a healthier academic environment. This study aims to investigate the intricate relationship between assessment periods and stress levels among medical students. It seeks to understand how academic demands and sociodemographic factors contribute to stress dynamics during these periods. METHODS: An online observational, longitudinal, and prospective study was conducted from February to October 2022. Medical students were recruited through snowball sampling and participated in surveys administered via Google Forms at two timepoints: before (T1) and during (T2) assessment periods. The surveys collected sociodemographic data and stress symptoms using Lipp's Inventory of Stress Symptoms for Adults (LSSI). RESULTS: The transition from T1 to T2 was defined by a rise in the prevalence of stress from 59.6 to 84.2% (p = 0.001) and a decline in symptom-free students from 40.4 to 15.8% (p = 0.001). There was a significant increase in exhaustion, from 12.3 to 31.6% (p = 0.0001). Higher stress levels were notably more prevalent among younger students (≤ 24 years), females, those from wealthier families, students without scholarships, those without prior degrees, and those in the clinical phase of their studies. However, non significant correlations were found between these sociodemographic and academic factors and the increase in stress. CONCLUSION: The findings highlight significant concerns regarding the mental health of medical students during assessment periods, marked by increased stress and exhaustion levels. These results emphasize the need for proactive interventions to manage stress effectively in medical education, considering its profound impact on students' well-being.
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Estresse Psicológico , Estudantes de Medicina , Humanos , Estudantes de Medicina/psicologia , Estudos Prospectivos , Estudos Longitudinais , Feminino , Masculino , Estresse Psicológico/epidemiologia , Brasil , Adulto Jovem , Adulto , Educação de Graduação em Medicina , Adaptação Psicológica , Inquéritos e QuestionáriosRESUMO
Astrocytes can protect neurons against oxidative stress and excitability-dependent disorders, such as epilepsy. Valeriana officinalis has been used as anticonvulsant and can exert an antioxidant effect, which may underlie its opposing action against the toxic effects of the pesticide rotenone. We investigated the V. officinalis /rotenone interaction in the cortical spreading depression (CSD), a phenomenon that depends upon brain excitability (in vivo model). In addition, we analyzed the protective action of V. officinalis against the cytotoxic effects of rotenone in cultures of rat C6 glioma cells (in vitro model). For the CSD study, Wistar rats received either V. officinalis (250 mg/kg/day via gavage for 15 days; n = 8) or 10 mg/kg/day rotenone via subcutaneous injections for 7 days (n = 7), or they received both substances (n = 5). Two control groups received either saline (vehicle for V. officinalis; n = 8) or 1% Tween-80 aqueous solution (vehicle for rotenone; n = 9). After treatment, CSD was recorded for 4 h. The rotenone- and V. officinalis-treated groups presented, respectively, with lower (2.96 ± 0.14 mm/min), and higher CSD propagation velocity (3.81 ± 0.10 mm/min) when compared with the controls (Tween-80, 3.37 ± 0.06 mm/min and saline, 3.35 ± 0.08 mm/min; p < 0.05). The rotenone plus V. officinalis-treated group displayed a CSD velocity (3.38 ± 0.07 mm/min) that was similar to controls. In line with these results, in vitro experiments on rat glioma C6 cells revealed a protective effect (MTT assay) of V. officinalis against rotenone-induced cytotoxicity. These results suggest the therapeutic potential of V. officinalis for treating neurological diseases involving redox imbalance and astrocyte dysfunction.
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Chronic kidney failure (CKF), which is frequently silent, can lead to considerable changes in the lives of patients. Depending on the stage, hospitalization and hours of nursing care are required to ensure medical and surgical treatment. The aim of this descriptive and quantitative study is to measure nursing workload at a nephrology unit based on daily application of the Nursing Activities Score (NAS) for 47 consecutive days. Patients were mostly young male adults in the chronic stage of the disease or admitted for kidney transplant. A total of 833 observations were obtained from 62 patients. The resulting NAS workload upon admission was 52%, corresponding to 12.5 hours of care per patient for 24 hours, which is similar to the workload found in intensive care units. This profile allows calculation of nursing work hours required for each patient and is a valuable tool for nursing managers when determining the number of staff members required to ensure assistance. Other studies should be conducted for clinical validation.
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Unidades Hospitalares , Nefropatias/enfermagem , Nefrologia , Processo de Enfermagem/estatística & dados numéricos , Recursos Humanos de Enfermagem/estatística & dados numéricos , Carga de Trabalho/estatística & dados numéricos , Doença Aguda , Adulto , Brasil , Doença Crônica , Grupos Diagnósticos Relacionados , Feminino , Hospitais de Ensino , Humanos , Transplante de Rim/enfermagem , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Avaliação em Enfermagem , Recursos Humanos de Enfermagem/psicologiaRESUMO
The objective of this descriptive study was to evaluate the level of patient`s care complexity in a hospital unit belonging to a school hospital located in São Paulo, Brazil. Data collection was carried out using the "Patient Classification System: a proposal to complement the instrument", by Fugulin et al., during thirty consecutive days. The use of this instrument resulted in 1.080 observations obtained from 156 patients' records. The majority of the patients required high level of care dependency; there were differences among the patient`s wards regarding gender and age, type of treatment and patients' level of care complexity. We concluded that there was a need to evaluate the health care providers in the institution, as well as to make adjustments regarding demands for technological and materials resources.
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Hospitalização , Cuidados de Enfermagem/classificação , Pacientes/classificação , Adolescente , Adulto , Idoso , Idoso de 80 Anos ou mais , Feminino , Unidades Hospitalares , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Adulto JovemRESUMO
This study evaluated the nursing workload in an inpatient unit of a university hospital. This descriptive study applied the Nursing Activities Score (NAS) over the course of 30 consecutive days. A total of 1,080 observations were obtained from the medical files of 156 patients. The average scored obtained in the NAS instrument was 47.31%. Considering that each single NAS score corresponds to 0.24 hours, an average of 11.35 hours of nursing care was required. This amount of hours correspond to the profile of inpatients demanding semi-intensive and intensive care, suggesting that the NAS can be used to evaluate the workload of the nursing staff in this unit.