ArticleCureus2026
Changes in Mental Well-Being, Lifestyle Behaviors, and Medication Use Before and During Medical School.
Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Changes in Peak Aerobic Capacity During an 8-Month Period in First-Year Medical Students: A Prospective Pilot Cohort Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMedical training is commonly associated with increased psychological stress, yet changes in mental health from before to during medical school are not consistently evaluated using within-participant comparisons. This study aimed to assess whether mental health indicators and related behaviors worsen during medical school compared to premedical school status.
methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional, anonymous survey of current U.S. medical students and recent graduates between April 2025 and January 2026. Using a self-developed questionnaire, we assessed recalled mental health status before medical school and current experiences during medical school via adaptations of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Social Functioning Scale (SFS). Additional self-developed items evaluated medication use, caffeine and nicotine use, physical activity, and perceived stressors. Paired ordinal outcomes were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed rank tests, and categorical variables were analyzed using McNemar tests.
resultsA total of 118 respondents completed all survey items. Participants reported significant increases in frequent mental and physical exhaustion (+62, 52.5%,
conclusionsMedical school was associated with worsening self-reported mental health symptoms and declines in health promoting behaviors, without a corresponding increase in prescribed psychiatric medication use. These findings suggest that psychological distress during medical training may not be adequately addressed through formal treatment pathways, highlighting the need for preventive and supportive institutional interventions.
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