Perceived Depression, Anxiety and Stress among Saudi Postgraduate Orthodontic Students: a Multi-institutional Survey

The aim of the study was to investigate three negative emotional states: depression, anxiety, and stress in Saudi postgraduate orthodontic students. A modified Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) questionnaire was sent electronically to eighty-four postgraduate orthodontic students in various years of two different programs (Master and Saudi Board in Orthodontics programs) in three dental schools of different regions in Saudi Arabia. Frequency distributions of the dependent variables were derived and comparisons were made by non-parametric tests. Regression analysis was carried out to evaluate the influence of the demographic (independent) variables on each emotional state. The scores for depression, anxiety and stress symptoms were 13.3 (±5.7), 10.3 (±4.8) and 21.3 (±6.4) respectively. No differences were found in terms of gender and years of study of the respondents for the depression, anxiety, and stress scales. Married students and those older than 30 years were found to exhibit a lower level of anxiety symptoms than those who were single and thirty years old or younger. These results indicated a need for student-oriented programs to provide appropriate support to the students, with a special attention to single and young students.