Factors associated with the use of drugs by medical students

• Grant number: 06/07319-9
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: March 01, 2008
• End date: February 28, 2010
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Psychiatry
• Principal Investigator: Dartiu Xavier da Silveira
• Grantee: Dartiu Xavier da Silveira
• Host Institution: Departamento de Psiquiatria. Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The use of alcohol and other drugs among medical students has been a theme of growing interest and concern on the part of researchers, teaching institutions and medical associations since the decade of 60. The theme merits even greater emphasis if we consider the fact that medical student will, in the future, be the professionals in charge of identifying and dealing with this condition4. Besides, it has been verified that many medical doctors continue to think of substance abuse as a social or moral question, but not as a medical problem. The objective of this study is to evaluate the patterns of drug use among students in a Brazilian Medical School, as well as factors associated with recent substance consumption, and comorbid psychiatric disorders. Methods: This investigation will include students from the first to the sixth academic years of the medical course at the Federal University of São Paulo, Brazil (UNIFESP). The data will be collected by means of a psychiatric interview, including information about the use of the following substances: alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, hallucinogens, cocaine, amphetamines, anti-cholinergic, organic solvents, tranquillizers, opiates, sedatives, barbiturates, and steroids. Students will be asked to anonymously participate the study, after signing an informed consent form. Statistics: Strength of associations will be tested with chi-square for categorical variables, whereas t-test will be used to compare continuous variables. Associations between recent drug use and other variables will be assessed using odds ratios (OR) and their respective confidence intervals. The control of confounders and interactions will be done by logistic regression. The results will be generated through the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), being 5 % the level of significance accepted. (AU)