Introduction:

Methylphenidate is a drug in the amphetamine groups that potentiates the cognitive performance and attracts healthy people who seek to improve their performance.

Objective:

To analyze the incidence of non-prescribed use of methylphenidate among medical students.

Methodology:

A cross-sectional study in which information was obtained from a questionnaire applied to students from the 1st to 5th year of the course of Medicine of the International University Three Frontiers - UNINTER-PY.

Results:

12% of students use prescription, 33% reported having indiscriminate use of methylphenidate and 66% answered that they did not use the drug. A higher percentage of drug use was observed between the first 21% and second 32% years compared to the third 18%, fourth year 14% and fifth year 14%. Regarding the reported side effects, 35% said they felt tachycardia, 18% felt a loss of appetite, 23% had hand tremors, 12% reported feeling good dryness, 47% said they felt other effects.

Conclusion:

It is perceived that a considerable percentage of medical students use without medical prescription methylphenidate, therefore there is a need to better understand the factors that interfere with that and to help in the prevention of the misuse of methylphenidate.

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