Depressive symptoms widespread in Seattle-area Ethiopian adults

A community-based cross-sectional survey found clinically significant depressive symptoms in 37.6% of 474 Ethiopian or Ethiopian-descendant adults in the Seattle metropolitan area. The finding, reported in 2024 data, is a screening estimate rather than a count of clinical diagnoses: participants were considered to screen positive if they scored at least 10 on the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire-9.

Researchers recruited adults aged 18 or older through social media, community networks and faith-based organizations between November and December 2024. The anonymous questionnaires, completed in the REDCap system, covered nativity, self-rated physical health, chronic medical conditions, reproductive health history, recreational marijuana or other drug use, firearm exposure and prespecified sociodemographic characteristics. The sample had a mean age of 31.6 years, and 49.8% of participants were male.

In a mutually adjusted logistic regression model, poorer self-rated physical health was associated with substantially higher odds of screening positive for clinically significant depressive symptoms. Compared with participants who rated their health excellent, those describing it as average had an adjusted odds ratio of 3.83, with a 95% confidence interval of 2.08 to 7.36. Those reporting health as poor or somewhat poor had an adjusted odds ratio of 10.73, with a 95% confidence interval of 4.53 to 26.80. The study did not establish whether physical health and depressive symptoms caused one another.

Ever use of recreational marijuana or other drugs was also associated with higher odds of clinically significant depressive symptoms, with an adjusted odds ratio of 3.52 and a 95% confidence interval of 2.08 to 6.03. Participants who knew someone who had been injured or killed by a firearm in the preceding year had an adjusted odds ratio of 2.32, with a 95% confidence interval of 1.39 to 3.90. These exposure measures were evaluated together in the model, and the researchers applied Benjamini-Hochberg correction for multiple comparisons. As an observational, cross-sectional study, the results show associations but cannot determine the sequence in which these factors and depressive symptoms developed.

Among women who had given birth, a history of postpartum depression was associated with current depressive symptoms. Their adjusted odds ratio was 9.76, with a 95% confidence interval of 4.31 to 23.51. The authors said the results identify areas for further investigation and potential culturally responsive prevention and care, while emphasizing that longitudinal research is needed to clarify temporal relationships. Because recruitment relied on community and faith-based channels, the findings describe this particular sample and may not represent all Ethiopian or Ethiopian-descendant adults in the Seattle metropolitan area.

Subject of Research: Prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms among Ethiopian and Ethiopian-descendant adults in metropolitan Seattle

Article Title: Prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms among Ethiopian and Ethiopian-Descent adults in the Seattle metropolitan area: A cross-sectional study

Article References: Weldemariam, H., Dagnew, Y., Girma, M., Worku, M., & Enquobahrie, D. A. (2026). Prevalence and correlates of depressive symptoms among Ethiopian and Ethiopian-Descent adults in the Seattle metropolitan area: A cross-sectional study. PLOS Mental Health, 3(10), e0000736. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmen.0000736

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmen.0000736

Keywords: depression screening, Ethiopian adults, Seattle, PHQ-9, physical health, postpartum depression, substance use, firearm exposure, cross-sectional study, Prevalence, correlates, depressive