Effect of Sleep Deprivation on the Physical, Socialand Mental Wellbeing on the Premenstrual Phase in Undergraduate Female Medical Students

Introduction: the aim was to study the relation between sleep deprivation and the physical, mental, social wellbeing in the premenstrual phase of Indian undergraduate female medical students. The objectives were to determine the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome and to study the effect of sleep deprivation with the regularity of the menstrual cycle in these students. Material and Methods: the study included 219 female undergraduate medical students, whose age ranged between 17 and 21 years. The students were categorised into those who are having night sleep less than 6 hours and those who have more than 6 hours. Seven to ten days prior to the beginning of menstruation was considered as the premenstrual phase. Results: in the present study, 85.4% of the students had symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. The comparison was not statistically significant for less than 6 hours of sleep and premenstrual symptoms and the regularity of the menstrual cycles (p>0.05). However, it was observed that the students who had less than 6 hours of night sleep were associated with the depressed mood and fatigue (p<0.05) during the premenstrual phase. Conclusion: the present study observed that, there is no significant association between the sleep deprivation and the regularity of the menstrual cycles, general physical symptoms, social life and relationships in the premenstrual phase in female medical students. However, lack of sleep had significant relationship with the depressed mood and fatigue in the premenstrual phase. The students need to be advised to have more than six hours of night sleep on daily basis.