Problematic smartphone use among moroccan medical students

Abstract

Introduction While Smartphone use has been increasing all across age sectors, university students are the largest consumers group of Smartphone services. However, their excessive use or addiction can have harmful effects on the mental and physical health of their users. It is a real public health problem that is growing and affects especially the young population. Objectives We aim to assess the prevalence of smartphone addiction among medical students in Casablanca, Morroco, describe the profile of techno-addictive students (Smartphones) and assess the risk of developing somatic and psychic conditions. Methods This is a descriptive analytical cross-sectional study, from October 2020 to March 2021, a sample of 878 students of the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Casablanca, Morocco, including all levels of the academic year 2020/2021. This sample was calculated on the basis of the number of medical students at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy of Casablanca 4095, with an expected prevalence of 51%. Data were collected anonymously through an online questionnaire, constructed of several sections including the SAS-SV scale. Results The age of the participants ranged from 17 to 32 years, average age was 22.03 with a M/F ratio of 0.43. Students ranged from first grade to eighth grade, with a majority of Moroccan nationality97.15%. The study revealed a total percentage of addiction of 37.9% for both sexes. Psychic signs such as anxiety, loss of control, disturbance and withdrawal were more frequent than physical signs such as wrist and neck pain. After the analysis of the different results, we come out with the following conclusions concerning the profile of the participants affected by smartphone addiction: Most of them are single94.76%, with a medium socio-economic level 55.5%, with another addiction 31.2%, especially to psychoactive substances,15% with psychiatric history, 45.22%with less than 5 years of smartphone use. Table I: Univariate associations of smartphone use and smartphone addiction. CATEGORY SUB CATEGORY SMARTPHONE ADDICTION ACCORDING TO THE SAS-SV NO ADDICTION P VALUE NUMBER POURCENTAGE NUMBER POURCENTAGE Sexe Female 137 23.1% 455 76.9% <0,001 Nationality Moroccan 266 31.2% 587 68.8% 0.028 Medical history Yes 45 25.4% 132 69.1% 0.042 Psychiatric history Yes 30 23.1 100 76.9 0.021 Taking treatment prescribed by thePsychiatrist No 259 33% 527 67% 0.029 Substance use Yes 116 42.3% 158 57.7% 0.001 Period of use of the smartphone <5 years 149 37.5% 248 62.5% 0.001 Internet access Yes 254 30.9% 556 74.6% 0.358 Conclusions In conclusion, the present study provides the first insights into smartphone use, smartphone addiction, and predictors of smartphone addiction in young people from Morocco. Future studies should extend this knowledge in order to draw clearer conclusions regarding the disease burden, and why not a more precise long-term exploration of the fate of these students and their later risk in the professional hospital setting seems worth studying. Disclosure of Interest None Declared