title: Good sleep quality is associated with better academic performance among Sudanese medical students.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is increasing awareness about the association of sleep quality and academic achievement among university students. However, the relationship between sleep quality and academic performance has not been examined in Sudan; this study assessed the relationship between sleep quality and academic performance among Sudanese medical students.
  
  
  METHODS
  A case-control study was conducted among 165 male and female medical students at two Sudanese universities. Excellent (A) and pass (C) academic groups were invited to respond to a self-administered questionnaire, using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Students also completed a diary detailing their sleep habits for 2 weeks prior to filling out the questionnaire. Various parameters of sleep quality were then compared between the two groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A significant difference (p < 0.001) between the excellent and average groups was found for overall sleep quality, subjective sleep rating, bedtime later than midnight, sleep latency, and daytime dysfunction (during driving, preparing a meal, etc.). No differences were found between groups for the use of sleep medications. The mean sleeping hours was (7 ± 1.9) and (6.3 ± 1.9) for the excellent and pass groups respectively (p < 0.05). A significant difference (p < 0.001) between the excellent and average groups was found for weekday and weekend bedtime, weekend wake-up time, and weekend wake-up delay. No differences were found between groups for the weekday's wake- up time, and bedtime delay during weekends. Besides, snoring was present in 9.2 % of the excellent group versus 28 % in pass group (p < 0.005).
authors.affiliation: Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tabuk, P.O. Box 741, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. s.hyder63@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Hyder Osman
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Mirghani
authors.affiliation: Internal Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tabuk, P.O. Box 741, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. osamasalih1972@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Osama Salih
authors.initials: OS
authors.lastname: Mohammed
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Engineering and Computer Sciences, The University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. y.murtadha@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Yahia Mohamed
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Almurtadha
authors.affiliation: Specialist in Internal Medicine, Ministry of Health, Khartoum, Sudan. monersiddig@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Moneir Siddig
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ahmed
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*; D012913:Snoring / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013397:Sudan / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult