Adverse childhood experiences and stress among oral health students: a descriptive correlational study.

Background: Stress is a challenge to many post-secondary students and, if prolonged and unmanaged, can affect academic success. Understanding factors that contribute to students' stress is important. One possible contributor may be adverse childhood experiences (ACEs); that is, traumatic events that occur during the first 18 years of life. Inverse relationships between the number of ACEs and indicators of poor mental well-being have been proposed.

Objective: To describe ACEs in oral health students (OHS) and the associations between the number and types of ACEs and levels of perceived stress, an indicator of mental well-being.

Methods: Invitations to participate in an anonymous online cross-sectional survey were sent to all OHS, 19 years and older, attending Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Self-reports of ACEs and perceived stress were collected. Zero-order correlations and regression modelling were used to examine associations.

Results: Twenty-six percent (26%, n = 66) of OHS completed the survey. Respondents reported an average of 2.20 ACEs; 34.9% reported ≥ 3 ACEs. Emotional abuse (41%) was the most reported ACE. Associations were observed between numbers of ACEs and stress. Levels of stress increased with the number of ACEs (r = 0.23, p < 0.05). Regression modelling determined levels of stress were not affected by ACE type (F (3,62) = 2.24, p = 0.092).

Discussion: This was the first study to examine associations between ACEs and perceived stress in OHS. These students reported greater numbers of ACEs than age-matched general populations. Levels of stress were associated with numbers of ACEs.

Conclusion: Faculty in dental and dental hygiene programs should recognize the prevalence of ACEs among OHS and the potential impact on their mental well-being.