Physical activity and depression levels among university students

Aim: In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the physical activity level and depression prevalence of the first 3 classes of the Faculty of Medicine who did not start clinical education and the Faculty of Sports Sciences students. Material and Methods: A total of 350 students from Akdeniz University Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Sport Sciences participated in our study and the questionnaires were applied by face to face interview method. In this research, Demographic Data Questionnaire, International Physical Activity Questionnaire-long form and "Investigation of Physical Activity and Depression Level in University Students" questionnaire including Health Questionnaire-9 were used. The analysis of the obtained data was made by IBM SPSS 24.0. Statistical significance level was accepted as p <0.05. Continuous variables were expressed as mean ± standard deviation, whereas categorical data as numbers and percentages. For the intergroup analysis of continuous variables, normality analyzes were performed with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov Goodness of Fit Test. Since the data did not conform to normal distribution, comparisons between two groups were made with the Mann Whitney U Test, and the comparisons between three groups and above were made with the Kruskal Wallis Test. Chi-Square Test was used in comparison of categorical data. Results: Of all, 18% of the medical students participating in this study had mild or insufficient activities, 59.3% moderate and 22.7% heavy activity; whereas it was determined that 7% of the students of the Faculty of Sports Sciences did mild or insufficient activity, 27.5% moderate and 65% heavy activity. It has been found that 82% of the students of the Faculty of Medicine were doing enough activity, this value was 92.5% in the Faculty of Sport Sciences. In this study, depression screening was performed using PHQ-9 (threshold value> 10). It was found that 42.6% of medical faculty students had depression, and 21.3% had moderate and severe depression. These values were 42% and 15% for the students of the Faculty of Sport Sciences respectively. Totally, the prevalence of depression in all students was found to be 42.3%. There was no relationship between the amount of physical activity and depression, but it was found that as the sitting level increased, the level of depression increased and this increase was statistically significant. Conclusion: The physical activity level of the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Sport Sciences students participating in the study was found to be sufficient and at a similar level contrary to expectations, however just a difference was found between their activity and intensity. The depression rate in students was found to be quite high. It is important to determine the factors that cause depression, to take necessary precautions and to implement prevention initiatives. Depression levels do not depend solely on physical activity, but has many causes, so it seems appropriate to plan studies on physical activity and depression that question the longer term. Keywords: Physical Activity, Depression, PHQ-9, Student, Sitting Level