,
Mpandzou Ghislain Armel,
Diatewa Euberma Josue,
Ngassaki Saurel,
Ossou-Nguiet Paul Macaire
Introduction: Psychological distress (PD) is a negative emotional state resulting from prolonged exposure to a stressor or an accumulation of environmental stressors. Objective: To identify factors associated with PD among general medicine students in Brazzaville. Patients and methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study. It was carried out over a period of 4 months at the FSSA. It focused on general medicine student (GMSs) from the first to the seventh year of medicine who consented to participate in the study. The variables studied were sociodemographic, academic, related to lifestyle and the medical educational environment, related to psychological distress and related to the need for psychological help and stress management. Results: The prevalence of psychological distress among medical students was 63.4%. The mean age of medical students was 21.5±2.8 years and the sex ratio was 0.6. Both parents were alive in 88.7%. The main source of funding was the parents in 47.5% and 70.3% of the GMSs who completed the internship had PD. In multivariate analysis, female gender (OR = 1.60; p = 0.015) and having at least one deceased parent (OR = 0.25; p = 0.036) were predictors of PD. Conclusion: PD is a concern for general medicine students in Brazzaville. Among the factors studied, female gender and poor perception of the educational environment are predictors of PD.
| Published in | Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience (Volume 9, Issue 4) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12 |
| Page(s) | 62-68 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Psychological Distress, Students, General Medicine, Congo
Effective | Percentage (%) | |
|---|---|---|
Level of study (year of medicine) | ||
1 | 153 | 23.4 |
2 | 108 | 16.5 |
3 | 96 | 14.7 |
4 | 109 | 16.7 |
5 | 95 | 14.6 |
6 | 52 | 8.0 |
7 | 40 | 6.1 |
Effective | Percentage (%) | |
|---|---|---|
Vital status | ||
The two living | 579 | 88.7 |
One of the two died | 57 | 8.7 |
The two deceased | 17 | 2.6 |
Marital status | ||
Married | 455 | 69.7 |
Divorced | 141 | 21.6 |
Widowers | 57 | 8.7 |
Absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Age groups (year) | ||||
[15, 20[ | 55 (23.0) | 107 (25.9) | Reference | |
[20, 25[ | 144 (60.3) | 251 (60.8) | 0.90 [0.61-1.32] | 0.579 |
[25, 30[ | 39 (16.3) | 54 (13.1) | 0.71 [0.42-1.20] | 0.208 |
[30, 35] | 1 (0.4) | 1 (0.2) | 0.51 [0.03-8.38] | 0.683 |
Gender | ||||
Male | 110 (46.0) | 134 (32.4) | Reference | |
Female | 129 (54.0) | 280 (67.6) | 1.78 [1.28-2.47] | 0.001 |
Marital status | ||||
Bachelor | 198 (82.8) | 326 (78.7) | Reference | |
As a couple | 39 (16.3) | 87 (21.0) | 1.35 [0.90-2.07] | 0.153 |
Married | 2 (0.8) | 1 (0.2) | 0.30 [0.01-3.19] | 0.332 |
Absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Level of study (year of study) | ||||
1 | 47 (19.7) | 106 (25.6) | Reference | |
2 | 40 (16.7) | 68 (16.4) | 0.75 [0.45-1.27] | 0.287 |
3 | 34 (14.2) | 62 (15.0) | 0.81 [0.47-1.39] | 0.442 |
4 | 44 (18.4) | 65 (15.7) | 0.66 [0.39-1.10] | 0.107 |
5 | 34 (14.2) | 61 (14.7) | 0.80 [0.46-1.37] | 0.408 |
6 | 18 (7.5) | 34 (8.2) | 0.84 [0.43-1.63] | 0.602 |
7 | 22 (9.21) | 18 (4.4) | 0.36 [0.18-0.74] | 0.005 |
Internship | ||||
Yes | 196 (82.0) | 291 (70.3) | Reference | |
No | 43 (18.0) | 123 (29.7) | 1.93 [1.31-2.87] | 0.001 |
absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Vital status of parents | ||||
The two living | 199 (83.3) | 380 (91.8) | Reference | |
One of the two died | 11 (4.6) | 6 (1.4) | 0.29 [0.10-0.78] | 0.015 |
The two deceased | 29 (12.1) | 28 (6.8) | 0.51 [0.29-0.87] | 0.015 |
Marital status of parents | ||||
Married | 149 (62.3) | 306 (73.9) | Reference | |
Divorce | 63 (26.4) | 78 (18.8) | 0.60 [0.41-0.89] | 0.010 |
Widower | 27 (11.3) | 30 (7.3) | 0.54 [0.31-0.94] | 0.030 |
Absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Source of funding | ||||
Father and mother | 110 (46.0) | 200 (48.3) | Reference | |
Father only | 74 (31.0) | 119 (28.7) | 0.88 [0.61-1.28] | 0.519 |
Mother only | 30 (12.6) | 66 (15.9) | 1.21 [0.74-1.98] | 0.451 |
Paid activity | 2 (0.8) | 1 (0.2) | 0.28 [0.02-3.07] | 0.337 |
Scholarship only | 4 (1.7) | 9 (2.2) | 1.24 [0.37-4.11] | 0.756 |
Family member | 19 (8.0) | 19 (4.6) | 0.55 [0.28-1.08] | 0.088 |
absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
DREEM global | ||||
Good perception | 185 (39.8) | 280 (60.2) | Reference | |
Bad perception | 54 (28.7) | 134 (71.3) | 1.64 [1.14-2.38] | <0.008 |
absence of DP n (%) | DP n (%) | OR [95% CI] | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sex | ||||
Male | 110 (46.0) | 134 (32.4) | Reference | |
Female | 129 (54.0) | 280 (67.6) | 1.60 [1.09-2.35] | 0.015 |
Vital status of parents | ||||
Living | 199 (83.3) | 380 (91.8) | Reference | |
One of the two died | 11 (4.6) | 6 (1.4) | 0.25 [0.06-0.86] | 0.036 |
The two deceased | 29 (12.1) | 28 (6.8) | - | - |
PD | Psychological Distress |
GMS | General Medicine Students |
FSSA | Health Sciences |
UMNG | Marien NGOUABI University |
DREEM | Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure |
K6 | Kessler Psychological Distress Scale-6 |
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APA Style
Galieni, S. B. P. E., Armel, M. G., Jessica, N. R., Happia, M. D., Josue, D. E., et al. (2025). Factors Associated with Psychological Distress Among General Medicine Students in Congo. Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience, 9(4), 62-68. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12
ACS Style
Galieni, S. B. P. E.; Armel, M. G.; Jessica, N. R.; Happia, M. D.; Josue, D. E., et al. Factors Associated with Psychological Distress Among General Medicine Students in Congo. Clin. Neurol. Neurosci. 2025, 9(4), 62-68. doi: 10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12
AMA Style
Galieni SBPE, Armel MG, Jessica NR, Happia MD, Josue DE, et al. Factors Associated with Psychological Distress Among General Medicine Students in Congo. Clin Neurol Neurosci. 2025;9(4):62-68. doi: 10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12
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Download@article{10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12,
author = {Sounga Bandzouzi Prince Eliot Galieni and Mpandzou Ghislain Armel and Ndingossoka Rosly Jessica and Motoula-Latou Dina Happia and Diatewa Euberma Josue and Gandou Paul and Ngassaki Saurel and Mialoudama Carl Harvey and Ossou-Nguiet Paul Macaire},
title = {Factors Associated with Psychological Distress Among General Medicine Students in Congo},
journal = {Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience},
volume = {9},
number = {4},
pages = {62-68},
doi = {10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.cnn.20250904.12},
abstract = {Introduction: Psychological distress (PD) is a negative emotional state resulting from prolonged exposure to a stressor or an accumulation of environmental stressors. Objective: To identify factors associated with PD among general medicine students in Brazzaville. Patients and methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study. It was carried out over a period of 4 months at the FSSA. It focused on general medicine student (GMSs) from the first to the seventh year of medicine who consented to participate in the study. The variables studied were sociodemographic, academic, related to lifestyle and the medical educational environment, related to psychological distress and related to the need for psychological help and stress management. Results: The prevalence of psychological distress among medical students was 63.4%. The mean age of medical students was 21.5±2.8 years and the sex ratio was 0.6. Both parents were alive in 88.7%. The main source of funding was the parents in 47.5% and 70.3% of the GMSs who completed the internship had PD. In multivariate analysis, female gender (OR = 1.60; p = 0.015) and having at least one deceased parent (OR = 0.25; p = 0.036) were predictors of PD. Conclusion: PD is a concern for general medicine students in Brazzaville. Among the factors studied, female gender and poor perception of the educational environment are predictors of PD.},
year = {2025}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Factors Associated with Psychological Distress Among General Medicine Students in Congo AU - Sounga Bandzouzi Prince Eliot Galieni AU - Mpandzou Ghislain Armel AU - Ndingossoka Rosly Jessica AU - Motoula-Latou Dina Happia AU - Diatewa Euberma Josue AU - Gandou Paul AU - Ngassaki Saurel AU - Mialoudama Carl Harvey AU - Ossou-Nguiet Paul Macaire Y1 - 2025/12/09 PY - 2025 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12 DO - 10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12 T2 - Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience JF - Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience JO - Clinical Neurology and Neuroscience SP - 62 EP - 68 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2578-8930 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.cnn.20250904.12 AB - Introduction: Psychological distress (PD) is a negative emotional state resulting from prolonged exposure to a stressor or an accumulation of environmental stressors. Objective: To identify factors associated with PD among general medicine students in Brazzaville. Patients and methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study. It was carried out over a period of 4 months at the FSSA. It focused on general medicine student (GMSs) from the first to the seventh year of medicine who consented to participate in the study. The variables studied were sociodemographic, academic, related to lifestyle and the medical educational environment, related to psychological distress and related to the need for psychological help and stress management. Results: The prevalence of psychological distress among medical students was 63.4%. The mean age of medical students was 21.5±2.8 years and the sex ratio was 0.6. Both parents were alive in 88.7%. The main source of funding was the parents in 47.5% and 70.3% of the GMSs who completed the internship had PD. In multivariate analysis, female gender (OR = 1.60; p = 0.015) and having at least one deceased parent (OR = 0.25; p = 0.036) were predictors of PD. Conclusion: PD is a concern for general medicine students in Brazzaville. Among the factors studied, female gender and poor perception of the educational environment are predictors of PD. VL - 9 IS - 4 ER -
Faculty of Health Sciences, Marien N'GOUABI University, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo;Neurology Department, Loandjili General Hospital, Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo
Faculty of Health Sciences, Marien N'GOUABI University, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo;Neurology Department, Brazzaville University Hospital, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
Faculty of Health Sciences, Marien N'GOUABI University, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo;Neurology Department, Brazzaville University Hospital, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
Neurology Department, Loandjili General Hospital, Pointe-Noire, Republic of Congo
Faculty of Health Sciences, Marien N'GOUABI University, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo;Neurology Department, Brazzaville University Hospital, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo
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