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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry
Volume 14 - 2023 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1287036
This article is part of the Research Topic

Psychological Intervention for Suicidal Ideation, Behavior, and Attempted Suicide

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Association between Love Breakup and Suicidal Ideation in Peruvian Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Danai Valladares-Garrido1 J. P. Zila-Velasque2, 3 Flor M. Santander-Hernández1, 4 Miguel A. Guevara-Morales1, 4 Noelia Morocho-Alburqueque5 Virgilio E. Failoc-Rojas6* Cesar Pereira7* Víctor J. Vera-Ponce8, 9 Darwin A. León-Figueroa10 Mario J. Valladares-Garrido11, 12
  • 1Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Cesar Vallejo, Piura 20001, Peru, Peru
  • 2Facultad de Medicina Humana, Universidad Nacional Daniel Alcides Carrión, Pasco 19001, Peru, Peru
  • 3Red Latinoamericana de Medicina en la Altitud e Investigación (REDLAMAI), Pasco 19001, Peru, Peru
  • 4Sociedad Científica de Estudiantes de Medicina, Universidad Cesar Vallejo, Piura 20009, Peru, Peru
  • 5Escuela de Medicina Humana, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de Piura, Piura 20002, Peru, Peru
  • 6Unidad de Investigación para la Generación y Síntesis de Evidencias en Salud, Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Lima 15024, Peru, Peru
  • 7Escuela de Medina, Universidad Continental, Lima 15046, Peru, Peru
  • 8Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Biomédicas (INICIB), Universidad Ricardo Palma, Lima 15039, Peru, Peru
  • 9Technological University of Peru, Peru
  • 10Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de San Martín de Porres, Chiclayo 14012, Peru, Peru
  • 11South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima 15046, Peru, Peru
  • 12Oficina de Epidemiología, Hospital Regional Lambayeque, Chiclayo 14012, Peru, Peru

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Objective: We aimed to determine the association between a major romantic breakup and suicidal ideation in medical students from three universities in Peru. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted during the first pandemic wave in 2021 on medical students from three universities in northern Peru. The outcome was suicidal ideation, measured with question nine of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 (GAD-7) and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) were also used to assess mental health symptoms. The exposure was the experience of a major love breakup during the pandemic. In addition, its association with other covariates (age, sex, family members infected with COVID-19, deceased family members with COVID-19, insomnia, and anxiety, among others) was examined. Results and discussions: Out of 370 students, 19.5% reported a major love breakup during the pandemic (95%CI: 15.5–23.8), and 34.3% had suicidal ideation (95%CI: 29.4–39.4). Having a major love breakup was associated with a higher prevalence of suicidal ideation (PR: 1.49, 95%CI: 1.32–1.67,p<0.001). Moderate insomnia (PR: 2.56, 95%CI: 1.70–3.87, p<0.001) and anxiety symptoms (PR: 1.94, 1.10–3.44, p=0.023) were also associated with suicidal ideation. Conclusion: Our study provides evidence of a significant association between a major love breakup and suicidal ideation. This finding emphasizes the need for further research to better understand this association and inform the development of effective suicide prevention policies in medical education.

Keywords: Medical students, Mental Health, love, Suicidal Ideation, COVID-19, pandemic, Peru

Received: 03 Sep 2023; Accepted: 08 Dec 2023.

Copyright: © 2023 Valladares-Garrido, Zila-Velasque, Santander-Hernández, Guevara-Morales, Morocho-Alburqueque, Failoc-Rojas, Pereira, Vera-Ponce, León-Figueroa and Valladares-Garrido. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence:
Dr. Virgilio E. Failoc-Rojas, Unidad de Investigación para la Generación y Síntesis de Evidencias en Salud, Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Lima 15024, Peru, Lima, Peru
Dr. Cesar Pereira, Escuela de Medina, Universidad Continental, Lima 15046, Peru, Lima, Peru