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<article xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" article-type="Original Article">
  <front>
    <journal-meta id="journal-meta-93f5a7603627472e95bbcc191cdbf452">
      <journal-id journal-id-type="nlm-ta">Prathima Institute of Medical Sciences</journal-id>
      <journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">Prathima Institute of Medical Sciences</journal-id>
      <journal-id journal-id-type="journal_submission_guidelines">https://www.pimr.org.in/instructions.php</journal-id>
      <journal-title-group>
        <journal-title>Perspectives in Medical Research</journal-title>
      </journal-title-group>
      <issn publication-format="electronic">2348-229X</issn>
      <issn publication-format="print">2348-1447</issn>
    </journal-meta>
    <article-meta id="article-meta-b5ec412f1d524756bf7a858b9d9bb2ef">
      <article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">06</article-id>
      <article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.47799/pimr.1201.06</article-id>
      <article-categories>
        <subj-group>
          <subject>Original Article</subject>
        </subj-group>
      </article-categories>
      <title-group>
        <article-title id="article-title-e1cbafe399044815bdbe7d6b82743087">
          <bold id="strong-4998dd035bb44109aa6269a9267a3d5b">Anxiety, Depression and Stress among Medical Students during  </bold>
          <bold id="strong-846641686c0d473bb511d79234a4d925">COVID- 19   </bold>
          <bold id="strong-6d8c592259c5409683ee07681c1a0a67">  Pandemic and their Coping Strategies</bold>
        </article-title>
      </title-group>
      <contrib-group>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name id="name-638f9de75492471f8381a7276c7a43d7">
            <surname>Afreen</surname>
            <given-names>Saleha</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref id="x-028c810044cb" rid="a-2c8493053649" ref-type="aff">1</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name id="name-76b01a4d68c14af5a188e81b48ffec64">
            <surname>Bhuvaneswari</surname>
            <given-names>P</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref id="x-59d0af328bfe" rid="a-f531cadc8fe9" ref-type="aff">2</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name id="name-f31ec142c35c45379e1c7d9d1abd3e30">
            <surname>KM</surname>
            <given-names>Susmitha</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref id="x-db596b72b681" rid="a-f2d7270fe692" ref-type="aff">3</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author" corresp="yes">
          <name id="name-66616424341e47f0888da43c8b449031">
            <surname>S</surname>
            <given-names>Pravallika</given-names>
          </name>
          <email>pravallikasomavarapu@gmail.com</email>
          <xref id="x-2a0841362ff7" rid="a-2c8493053649" ref-type="aff">1</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <name id="name-1cbff9e68fb34b34af55043a264c2b56">
            <surname>Shaik</surname>
            <given-names>Subahani</given-names>
          </name>
          <xref id="x-77d4ec3db047" rid="a-4c28d62fb3de" ref-type="aff">4</xref>
        </contrib>
        <aff id="a-2c8493053649">
          <institution>Assistant professor, Department of Community Medicine, ACSR Govt. Medical College, Nellore, AP</institution>
        </aff>
        <aff id="a-f531cadc8fe9">
          <institution>Associate professor, Department of Community Medicine, ACSR Govt. Medical College, Nellore, AP</institution>
        </aff>
        <aff id="a-f2d7270fe692">
          <institution>Associate professor, Department of Community Medicine, Govt. Medical College, Machilipatnam, AP</institution>
        </aff>
        <aff id="a-4c28d62fb3de">
          <institution>Assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry, ACSR Govt. Medical College, Nellore, AP</institution>
        </aff>
      </contrib-group>
      <pub-date date-type="pub">
        <day>30</day>
        <month>4</month>
        <year>2024</year>
      </pub-date>
      <volume>12</volume>
      <issue>1</issue>
      <fpage>30</fpage>
      <lpage>34</lpage>
      <history>
        <date date-type="received">
          <day>21</day>
          <month>12</month>
          <year>2023</year>
        </date>
        <date date-type="accepted">
          <day>11</day>
          <month>4</month>
          <year>2024</year>
        </date>
        <date date-type="rev-recd">
          <day>17</day>
          <month>3</month>
          <year>2024</year>
        </date>
      </history>
      <permissions>
        <copyright-statement>©2023 (Saleha Afreen) et al. This is an open-access journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License CC-BY 4.0. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original authors and source are credited.</copyright-statement>
        <copyright-year>2024</copyright-year>
      </permissions>
      <abstract id="abstract-abstract-title-ad0f94fb742a47dd8dd81ee38c27dfac">
        <title id="abstract-title-ad0f94fb742a47dd8dd81ee38c27dfac">Abstract</title>
        <p id="paragraph-120251b7fa2b49df92468ba8d1b14b7b"><bold id="strong-8940c5c85b1941aeb73b3d3eadf559ea">Background:</bold> The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated mental health challenges among medical students, already a vulnerable group to mental health disorders. Recent evidence underscores a significant rise in anxiety, depression, and stress among this demographic globally, necessitating a deeper understanding of their mental health status and effective interventions. <bold id="strong-dbddcf8693094504862b337e2d6e0c6a">Objective:</bold> This study aims to assess the socio-demographic profile, prevalence rates of depression, anxiety, and stress, as well as coping strategies employed by medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on identifying effective interventions for managing their mental health crises. <bold id="strong-95363d0b9f1c4a5991140d9328137d28">Methods:</bold> A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1st to 4th year MBBS students at ACSR Government Medical College, Nellore, during August and September 2020. Data were collected online using Google Forms, incorporating demographic details and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were utilized for data analysis. <bold id="strong-bdbac74399654a0c801f5913a884ede4">Results:</bold> The study included 400 participants, 57% of whom were female, with a mean age of 23 ± 2 years. Significant proportions reported experiencing depression (20.2%), anxiety (13%), or stress (51.3%), with notable rates of past psychiatric symptoms. Coping mechanisms included video chatting (35%) and online entertainment (32.2%), while professional help utilization was low (5.5%). COVID-19 repercussions extended beyond mental health, impacting various facets of daily life. <bold id="strong-5f83a7ab8e4646ecb614f19981036992">Conclusion:</bold> This study found various mental health challenges faced by medical students during the pandemic, emphasising the need for ongoing monitoring and psychological support. Additionally, a low rate of seeking professional help was found. Early training in handling pandemic-like situations and mental health is recommended. However, further research is necessary to track mental health progression and ensure accurate diagnosis through individual clinical assessments.</p>
      </abstract>
      <kwd-group id="kwd-group-0d7456b6dae842da8717aa824c33635c">
        <title>Keywords</title>
        <kwd>mental health</kwd>
        <kwd>Scale</kwd>
        <kwd>Socio-demographic</kwd>
        <kwd>Depression</kwd>
        <kwd>DASS -21</kwd>
      </kwd-group>
      <funding-group>
        <funding-statement>None</funding-statement>
      </funding-group>
    </article-meta>
  </front>
</article>
