Introduction:

In the context of medical training, many students seek relief and emotional balance through the use of psychoactive substances.

Objective:

This study aimed to evaluate the consumption of psychoactive substances among medical students at the Faculty of Health Sciences, State University of Rio Grande do Norte, with the aim of contributing to the formulation of prevention activities.

Method:

This cross-sectional study adopted a quantitative and descriptive approach. Standardized questionnaires were applied between October and December 2020 for first-year and internship students. Categorical variables were analyzed using frequencies and percentages and the relationship between these variables was performed using the chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test. Associations and comparisons, in relation to the study periods, were considered significant in the case of p-value < 0.05.

Results:

The lifetime prevalence of psychoactive substance use was 81.7% (n = 107). Tobacco and cannabis consumption was significantly higher in women compared to men, p = 0.019 and p = 0.05, respectively. Furthermore, 48.4% of the students who suffer from insomnia, 85.7% of those who reported being substance-dependant, and 39% of those who believe that studying medicine is a precursor for consumption, make use of anxiolytics, sedatives, and hypnotics, p = 0.025, p = 0.004 and p = 0.01, respectively.

Conclusion:

A high use of psychoactive substances was found among medical students at the State University of Rio Grande do Norte and the use profile maintained throughout the course included atypical findings that diverged from other studies, demonstrating the heterogeneity of medical student populations, which points to the need for more studies to expand and analyze the results found.

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