Association of depression with anxiety, insomnia, social support, and social capital

IntroductionThe association of depression (depressive symptoms) with anxiety, insomnia, social support, and cognitive social capital has been studied in medical students. However, these associations have been analyzed independently, without adjusting or exploring possible interactions between them. ObjectiveTo evaluate the association of depression with anxiety, insomnia, social support, and cognitive social capital in medical students from Santa Marta, Colombia. Method: A cross-sectional study was designed, including medical students who reported symptoms of anxiety (GAD-7, Cronbachs alpha of 0.91), insomnia (Athens Insomnia Scale, Cronbachs alpha of 0.80), social support (Oslo-3, Cronbachs alpha of 0.45), cognitive social capital (CSCS-5, Cronbachs alpha of 0.77) and depression (PHQ-9, Cronbachs alpha of 0.88). Using logistic regression, they measured the associations and interactions for depression. ResultsThree-hundred-nine students aged 18 and 39 participated (M=20.8, SD=2,7); 54.7% were women. 31.1% reported anxiety; 41.1%, insomnia; 57.3%, limited social support; 26.3%, poor cognitive social capital; and 39.5%, depression. Anxiety (OR=9.78, 95%CI 4.90-19.45), insomnia (OR=8.04, 95%CI 4.30-15.05), and the interaction between limited social support and poor cognitive social capital (OR=2.36, 95%CI 1.04-5.34) were significantly associated with depression (Hosmer-Lemeshow chi-square of 7.69, degree of freedom of 4, and p-value of 0.10, R-squared of Nagelkerke of 0.55). ConclusionsForty percent of medical students report symptoms of depression. Depression is significantly associated with anxiety, insomnia, social support, and cognitive social capital. New studies should explore other possible variables related to depression in Colombian medical students.