Background: Mental disorders are common among migrant workers. There is no data on depression in Saudi Arabia among them; although, they are a third of the population.
Objective: To determine the prevalence of depression and to assess its relationship with duration of stay and living condition in a sample of migrant workers.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 400 migrant workers was conducted in Al-Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. Exposure and covariate factors were assessed with a standardized questionnaire, depression with the CES-D (Center for Epidemiological Studies on Depression) scale, and physical indices (e.g. weight, height, and blood pressure) with a general examination. Logistic regression was used to identify significant correlates of depression.
Results: Depression prevalence was 20%; it did not vary by duration of stay or living condition but by age, stress, and self-reported health. In the multivariate model, those who reported 'moderate' or 'high' levels of stress were 1.7 (95% CI: 0.9, 3.1) and 3.9 (95% CI: 1.7, 9.1) times more likely to have depression (reference ='low' level), respectively. Similarly, those who rated their health either 'good' or 'fair to very poor' were 3.4 (95% CI: 1.9, 6.1) and 4.8 (95% CI: 2.3, 10.1) times more likely to have depression (reference ='excellent/very good'), respectively.
Limitations: The data were collected from one company and pertained to only male participants, and the study design could not establish temporal sequence between the exposure and outcome variables.
Conclusion: Depression is considerably high in this population; a large-scale and nationally representative survey is needed to validate the findings.
Keywords: Cross-sectional; Depression; Migrant; Saudi Arabia.
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