Volume 30, Issue 170, April 2026

Impact of screen time on sleep quality and duration among medical and healthcare students: A narrative review

Mikołaj Kotusiewicz^1♦, Zuzanna Czuba², Filip Gałązka³, Julia Gałązka⁴, Tomasz Karwowski⁵, Jakub Majcherek⁶, Mateusz Mazurek⁷, Agata Olecka⁸, Fryderyka Orawczak⁹, Maciej Świerczyna¹⁰

¹Jagiellonian University Collegium Medicum, Świętej Anny 12, 31-008 Kraków, Poland
²Medical University of Warsaw, Żwirki i Wigury 61, 02-091 Warsaw, Poland
³Copernicus PL Sp. z o.o., St. Adalbert Hospital, Aleja Jana Pawła II 50, 80-462 Gdańsk, Poland
⁴Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, Wóycickiego 1/3, 01-938 Warsaw, Poland
⁵Voivodeship Hospital in Płock, Medyczna 19, 09-400 Płock, Poland
⁶Voivodeship Hospital in Tarnów, Lwowska 178A, 33-100 Tarnów, Poland
⁷Medical University of Warsaw, Żwirki i Wigury 61, 02-091 Warsaw, Poland
⁸7th Military Naval Hospital, Polanki 117, 80-305 Gdańsk, Poland
⁹Medical University of Lodz, Al. Kościuszki 4, 90-419, Łódź, Poland
¹⁰Ministry of the Interior and Administration Hospital, Północna 42, 91-425 Łódź, Poland

^♦Corresponding author
Mikołaj Kotusiewicz, Jagiellonian University Collegium Medicum Świętej Anny 12, 31-008 Kraków, Poland

ABSTRACT

Sleep quality (SQ) is an essential factor for both physical and mental health. Among university populations, especially those in medical and healthcare fields, poor SQ is frequently noted at alarmingly high rates. This narrative review summarises recent findings on the relationship between screen time (ST), with a focus on device use before bedtime and problematic patterns of use, and overall SQ and sleep duration in this group. Studies show that both excessive and bedtime-specific ST adversely affect sleep latency, duration, and efficiency as well as overall well-being. These outcomes are mainly due to physiological mechanisms, including melatonin suppression and disruption of the circadian rhythm from exposure to shortwavelength light. The literature consistently shows that bedtime device use is associated with poorer SQ. At the same time, the impact regarding total daily ST is ambiguous and depends on things like why the device is used (for study or leisure), the type of device, and other variables. Excessive ST correlates positively with adverse mental health outcomes and physical issues, especially in the musculoskeletal system. Additionally, it is also associated with reduced academic performance, mainly due to memory problems and exacerbated daytime sleepiness. Studies indicate that fixing and improving SQ and sleep duration is possible by restricting device use near bedtime. Main research limitations include a lack of longitudinal studies, dependence on self-reported SQ and ST data, and insufficient use of objective measures. This review points out the importance of reducing bedtime ST and encourages healthy sleep practices among students.

Keywords: sleep quality, screen time, medical students, circadian rhythm, electronic device

Medical Science, 2026, 30, e73ms3783

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Published: 16 April 2026