Prevalence of Body-focused repetitive behaviors among undergraduate medical students at a public sector university Karachi

BackgroundBody-focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs) is a catch-all term for a group of obsessive behaviors, including skin picking (dermatillomania), hair pulling (trichotillomania), nail-biting (onychophagia), and nose picking (rhinotillexomania), which have a negative impact on both physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of BFRBs among medical students aged 18 to 25 attending Jinnah Sindh Medical University Karachi. MethodologyA cross-sectional study was conducted on 295 medical students of Jinnah Sindh Medical University Karachi. Data was collected through an online questionnaire which consisted of socio-demographic characteristics, engagement in BFRBs and distress due to it. ResultsMajority of participants (61.2%) were in their clinical years (3rd, 4th and 5th). Among those exhibiting BFRBs, 69.9% were female. Through this study we found that the most common BFRB among the medical students of Jinnah Sindh Medical University is Nail biting which is 22.8% followed by Skin picking disorder which is 19.1%,Hair pulling 17.1%,Cheek biting 13.8% followed by Nose picking 7.7% ConclusionIn our research, it has been noticed that participants were engaged in BFRBs. But it was not significantly common in adults. Majority of respondents reported never engaging in these behaviors (skin picking, hair pulling, nail-biting, nose picking and cheek biting). While a significant percentage of respondents engaged occasionally or frequently in these behaviors.