ABSTRACT Objective:

To assess sleep quality and stress level and to analyze their effect on the academic performance of undergraduate dental students.

Material and Methods:

A cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted among 234 undergraduate dental students at Bhubaneswar. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), consisting of 18 items rated on a 4-point Likert scale, assessed sleep quality. Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) evaluated the stress level. Google Forms collected demographic details and marks obtained in their previous examination. Chi-square, Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis tests, and Spearman correlation coefficient were used for analysis (p≤0.05).

Results:

Mean PSQI and K10 scores were 4.87±4.5 and 17.60±8.5, respectively. 38% of students had poor sleep quality, and mean actual sleep hours were 8.01±1.7. One-fourth (24.8%) of subjects had moderate to severe stress. Sleep quality significantly differed among the various academic years (p=0.001). A post-hoc test showed a difference between 1st and 2nd-year students and 1st and 4th-year students. A statistically significant difference between genders regarding the components of the K10 scale was observed. A non-significant positive correlation between total marks and K10 score and a negative correlation between marks and global PSQI score was found.

Conclusion:

Sleep quality and stress harm the academic performance of dental students.