86% of Medical Undergraduates Experience Moderate-to-Severe Nomophobia, 62% Report Poor Sleep Quality: Study

While smartphones serve as vital educational tools for medical trainees, previous research shows that excessive usage precipitates sleep disturbances; however, limited evidence specifically examines how psychological mobile phone dependency—termed nomophobia—impacts sleep quality in this population. Addressing this clinical gap, Doctor Anil K Singh and colleagues from the Department of Physiology at Lala Lajpat Rai Memorial Medical College in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India, conducted a study aiming to estimate nomophobia prevalence and evaluate its correlation with sleep quality among first-year medical undergraduates.

Therefore, the two-month cross-sectional study evaluated 100 first-year medical undergraduates (54% male, 55% aged 18–20) in Uttar Pradesh, excluding those with pre-existing psychiatric, sleep, or chronic pain conditions. Using the Nomophobia Questionnaire and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, researchers assessed nomophobia prevalence, sleep quality, and their mutual correlation.

Key Clinical Findings of the Study Includes:

• Nomophobia Prevalence: The study identified moderate nomophobia in 66% and severe nomophobia in 20% of participants, whereas only 1% were free from the condition.
• Sleep Quality Deficits: The study recorded poor sleep quality (PSQI score > 5) in 62% of medical students, yielding a mean global score of 7.43 ± 3.10, compared to 38% with good sleep quality.
• Correlation Dynamics: The study demonstrated a weak yet statistically significant positive correlation between nomophobia severity and sleep disturbance (rs = 0.20, p = 0.03).
• Categorical Comparison: The study observed poor sleep quality in 65.1% of high-nomophobia subjects compared to 42.9% in low-nomophobia subjects, although this categorical association lacked statistical significance (χ² = 2.53, df = 1, p = 0.11, Cramér’s V = 0.159).
• Multivariate Regression: The study confirmed through multiple linear regression that total nomophobia score, age, and gender were not independent predictors of sleep quality (coefficient of determination [R²] = 0.048, F-statistic = 1.63, p = 0.188).

The results suggest that while moderate-to-severe nomophobia affects 86% of medical students and 62% exhibit poor sleep quality, mobile phone anxiety alone does not independently determine sleep architecture. Instead, sleep disturbances in this cohort reflect a complex, multifactorial etiology influenced by broader academic, psychological, and lifestyle parameters.

Thus, the study concludes that clinicians and medical educators may consider incorporating routine assessments of digital habits alongside sleep patterns to facilitate early identification of at-risk students and implement targeted sleep hygiene counseling.

Although limited by a single-center cross-sectional design relying on self-reported questionnaires among 100 first-year medical undergraduates, these preliminary findings highlight the utility of prospective, multi-institutional longitudinal research to elucidate causal mechanisms and unmeasured confounders.

Reference

Singh AK, Kulshreshtha M, Tandon A, Srivastava A, Singh G, Lalita C. Assessment of Nomophobia and Its Correlation with Sleep Quality in Medical Students of North-western Region of Uttar Pradesh: A Cross-sectional Study. Indian J Sleep Med 2026;21(3):112–116.