OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of minor mental disorders (MMR) among medical students of the Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB) and to evaluate possible correlations between MMR and risk factors. METHODS: CRoss-sectional study conducted from April to August 2012 involving 384 medicine students. The questionnaire was self-administered and anonymous. We collected sociodemographic data and information on their social support networks. For screening MMR, we used the Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20). RESULTS: The overall prevalence of TMM was found to be 33.6%, which was independently correlated to the duration of the course (p <0.001, 9.7% to 63.3%), age (p <0.05, 25% to 42.6%), not following a religion (p <0.05, 44.8%). CONCLUSION: The data demonstrate a high prevalence of MMR in this population group and the importance of support programs for mental health prevention and care of medical students, improving their quality of life.
Mental Disorders; Medical Students; Risk Factors; Mental Health
