Introduction:

To measure the fatigue and excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) levels in medical internship students, as well as to analyze associated sociodemographic and personal factors.

Methods:

This is an analytical cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach. The study participants were medical internship students from PUC Goiás, a period that corresponds to the last two years of the medical course. Three instruments were used for the study development: a sociodemographic questionnaire with questions directed to the investigated phenomenon, the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) and the Chalder Fatigue Scale.

Results:

A total of 116 internship students from PUC Goiás medical school were included in the study. The mean age was 24.3 (± 8.4) years. Regarding gender, 31.9% of the sample consisted of males and 68.1% of females. When analyzing the level of fatigue, the considerable presence of fatigue was observed in 99 (85.3%) of the internship students. When comparing fatigue with the sociodemographic aspects of the analyzed students, it was observed that the gender variable showed a significant association, reaching higher scores in female students (p = 0.035). When comparing fatigue with the students’ personal aspects a significant association with fatigue was observed among students who stated: rarely practicing physical activities (p = 0.0038); sometimes practicing artistic activities (p = 0.034); sometimes doing tourist activities (p = 0.022), having a psychiatric illness (p = 0.0006); having difficulty sleeping (p <0.0001); not smoking (p = 0.011); using sleep-altering substances (p = 0.028) and not being satisfied with their academic performance (p <0.0001). As for the analysis of EDS, considerable levels of sleepiness were observed in 62 (53.4%) students, and the mean score among the participants was 11.2. When evaluating the sociodemographic aspects of the study participants regarding EDS, it was observed that higher levels were again found in females (p = 0.041). Compared the EDS with the students’ personal aspects , a significant association was observed in students who reported having difficulty sleeping (p = 0.039) and students who were not satisfied with their academic performance (p = 0.027). Finally, Pearson’s correlation analysis was performed between fatigue levels and EDS levels of the 116 medical internship students analyzed and identified a positive moderate correlation with statistical significance (r = 0.3777) between these two disorders (p <0.0001).

Conclusion:

Data showed that the students’ sociodemographic and personal aspects have a direct influence on their fatigue and EDS levels. Such evidence is of the utmost importance, as fatigue and EDS can have negative consequences for medical students. Having better knowledge about the correlation between these disorders, as well as the factors related to them, allows the approach of this problem by higher education institutions, aiming at better outcomes regarding the quality of life of students and future professionals.

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