Nomophobia is the discomfort caused by not being in contact with a cell phone. Few studies have addressed nomophobia in university students. The study aimed to evaluate nomophobia and its associated factors in Peruvian medical students. We conducted an analytical cross-sectional study on Peruvian medical students between June 2020 and March 2021, using an online survey disseminated through social networks. We analyzed 3139 responses (females: 61.1%, median age: 22 years): 25.7% presented moderate nomophobia and 7.4% severe nomophobia. In the adjusted model, the nomophobia score was lower in students ≥24 years (β: −4.1, 95% CI: −7.2 to −1.0) and was higher in those who had a mobile internet data plan (β: 2.9, 0.8 to 5.0), used the cell phone >4 h (β: 4.5, 2.3 to 6.7), used a smartphone mainly for education (β: 2.5, 0.2 to 4.8), social networks (β: 8.2, 5.8 to 10.6) and entertainment (β: 3.3, 0.5 to 6.1), and those who presented possible anxious (β: 6.6, 4.3 to 8.9) or depressive (β: 19.5, 5.2 to 9.6) symptomatology. In conclusion, nomophobia in university students is a frequent and emerging problem, present mainly at younger ages and associated with symptoms of anxiety or depression. Implementing evaluation and early intervention strategies would favor the mental health of university students.

During medical training, students are exposed to stressors that deteriorate mental health. This study determined depression and anxiety prevalence and their associated factors in students from four medical schools in northern Peru. A cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students from Lambayeque, Peru. The Goldberg Anxiety and Zung Depression tests were applied. The dependent variables were depression and anxiety, and their association with covariates (age, sex, type of university, socioeconomic level, experience, family problem, and physical activity) was evaluated. Prevalence ratios were calculated using generalized linear models. Of 482 students, the prevalence of anxiety was 61.8% and depression was 22.0%. A severe level of anxiety was observed in 6.2% in the group between 16 and 20 years old. It was observed that private university students had higher frequencies of having depression (PR = 2.01) and anxiety (PR = 1.35); males had a lower risk of anxiety (PR = 0.82), but higher risk of depression compared to females (PR = 1.45). Performing physical activity decreased the prevalence of depression (PR = 0.53); however, it increased the frequency of anxiety (PR = 1.26). Having family problems increased the prevalence of anxiety (PR = 1.26). Medical students from private universities experienced higher rates of depression and anxiety. Depression and anxiety were associated with gender and physical activity. These findings highlight the importance of mental health promotion due to its link with quality of life and academic performance.

Objective: To determine the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and visual impairment (VI) or blindness in the rural Peruvian Amazon, hypothesizing that higher SES would have a protective effect on the odds of VI or blindness. Methods: In this cross-sectional study of 16 rural communities in the Peruvian Amazon, consenting adults aged ≥ 50 years were recruited from ~30 randomly selected households per village. Each household was administered a questionnaire and had a SES score constructed using principal components analysis. Blindness and VI were determined using a ministry of health 3-meter visual acuity card. Results: Overall, 207 adults aged ≥ 50 were eligible; 146 (70.5%) completed visual acuity screening and answered the questionnaire. Of those 146 participants who completed presenting visual acuity screening, 57 (39.0%, 95% CI 30.2–47.1) were classified as visually impaired and 6 (4.1%, 95% CI 0.9–7.3) as blind. Belonging to the highest SES tercile had a protective effect on VI or blindness (OR 0.29, 95% CI 0.09 to 0.91, p = 0.034), with a linear trend across decreasing levels of SES (p = 0.019). This observed effect remained significant regardless of how SES groups were assigned. Conclusion: Belonging to a higher SES group resulted in a lower odds of VI or blindness compared to those in the lowest SES group. The observation of a dose response provides confidence in the observed association, but causality remains unclear. Blindness prevention programs could maximize impact by designing activities that specifically target people with lower SES.

Objective: To determine the factors associated with prevention practices against COVID-19 in the Peruvian population according to rural vs. urban locations. Methods: Analytical cross-sectional study, secondary analysis based on a previously collected database. A sample of individuals over 18 years of age, residing in Peru and with no history of COVID-19was evaluated. Factors associated with prevention practices were evaluated using Poisson regressions with variance adjustment by region cluster and stratified by rurality. Results: Of 3231 participants included, 2741 (84.8%) were from urban areas and 490 (15.2%) from rural areas. The frequency of good prevention practices against COVID-19 was 27.8% in our total sample. In urban areas the frequency of good prevention practices was 28.8% and in rural areas it was 22.5%. Factors associated with prevention practices against COVID-19 in both urban and rural areas were male sex (urban: aPR 0.64, 95%CI 0.55–0.75; rural: aPR 0.66, 95%CI 0.54–0.80) and self-considering adequately carrying out prevention practices (urban: aPR 2.48, 95%CI 2.13–2.89; rural: aPR 2.70, 95%CI 2.27–3.19). Conclusion: The frequency of good prevention practices against COVID-19 was less than 30% in both urban and rural areas. There are differences in the factors associated with good preventive practice against COVID-19. Only sex and considering that preventive measures were adequately carried out were associated with good prevention practices in both areas. In view of this, prevention measures should be promoted taking into account cultural principles and considering geographical location in the face of present and future outbreaks or pandemics.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the factors associated with the consumption of drugs without scientific evidence in patients with mild COVID-19 infection in Peru. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was carried out including 372 adult patients with a history of mild COVID-19 disease. Factors associated with drug consumption were evaluated by Poisson regressions with robust variance adjustment using the bootstrapping resampling method. Results: Seventy-two percent consumed some medication without scientific evidence, with antibiotics (71%) and ivermectin for human use (68%) being the most commonly used. Factors associated with the consumption of drugs to treat mild COVID-19 infection were thinking that the drugs are not effective (adjusted prevalence ratio, 0.55; 95% confidence interval, 0.41–0.74) and not being informed about the efficacy of the drugs (adjusted prevalence ratio, 0.48; 95% confidence interval, 0.36–0.65). Conclusions: Education of the population seems to be the main factor that increases the consumption of drugs without scientific evidence in the Peruvian population to treat mild COVID-19.

Peru reported the second-highest COVID-19 cases in Latin America, after Brazil. The first COVID-19 wave occurred between March–December 2020, and the second occurred between January–September 2021. The differences between these waves remain largely unknown, and there is no comparison between them in Peru. We evaluated the variation in the clinical and epidemiological components of COVID-19-affected patients in both waves in northern Peru by a retrospective study using the clinical follow-up database of Lambayeque and the epidemiological notification form database of NotiWeb. The COVID-19-associated factors during the two waves were determined using simple and multiple regression analysis, and the prevalence ratio (PR) was estimated. During the second wave of COVID-19, there was an increase in cough symptoms in 12.1%, odynophagia in 5.0%, and chills in 16.0% compared with the first wave. The second wave was marked by a higher proportion of affected adolescents and children and a greater percentage of respiratory symptoms than the first wave.