The prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms from an Arabian setting: A wake up call.

It has been shown that medical students have a higher rate of depressive symptoms than the general population and age- and sex-matched peers. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms among the medical students of a large school following a traditional curriculum and its relation to personal background variables. A descriptive-analytic, cross-sectional study was conducted in a medical school in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The medical students of King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, were screened for depressive symptoms using the 21-item Beck Depression Inventory. A high prevalence of depressive symptoms (48.2%%) was found, it was either mild (21%%), moderate (17%%), or severe (11%%). The presence and severity of depressive symptoms had a statistically significant association with early academic years ( p < 0.000) and female gender ( p < 0.002). The high prevalence of depressive symptoms is an alarming sign and calls for remedial action, particularly for the junior and female students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]