{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,15]],"date-time":"2026-04-15T18:42:22Z","timestamp":1776278542002,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":51,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,15]],"date-time":"2026-04-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1776211200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/publicdomain\/zero\/1.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosmentalhealth.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLOS Ment Health"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Female sex\u00a0workers (FSWs) encounter increased risk of negative health consequences, including common mental health conditions (CMCs) in Tanzania. The prevalence and association of the CMCs with social, structural, and violence-related factors remains to be fully understood. We assessed the prevalence of CMCs and associations with socio-structural risk factors among FSW. We used Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Harvard Trauma Questionnaire-17 (HTQ-17), World Health Organization violence against women Instrument, Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT), and a two-item questionnaire to measure depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), violence, alcohol use risks, and suicidal behavior, respectively. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used in data analyses, with a significance level set at 0.05. The prevalence of depression, anxiety, and PTSD was 49.2%, 40.4% and 20.2%, respectively. Thirty-five percent had ever had suicidal thoughts, and 7.7% had ever attempted suicide. Being raped by a gang of men was significantly associated with depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Non-intimate partner violence (non-IPV) was significantly associated with depression, anxiety, and suicidal behavior, while both non-consensual sex at sexual debut and duration since last vaginal sex were significantly associated with PTSD and suicidal behavior. Some factors were condition-specific: religion and client volume in the past seven days were associated with anxiety; living with three or more children and sex work mobility were associated with increased PTSD; while place of residence, extra source of income, and engagement in anal sex in the past six months were significantly associated with suicidal behaviors. Alcohol use partially and fully mediated the relationship between non-IPV and anxiety\u00a0and PTSD, respectively, whereas sex work mobility showed no moderation effect on the relationship between non-IPV and any CMC. Innovative and integrative mental health care targeting critical risk factors among FSWs is\u00a0essential to mitigate the increasing prevalence of CMCs.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pmen.0000523","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,15]],"date-time":"2026-04-15T17:43:06Z","timestamp":1776274986000},"page":"e0000523","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pmen.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["The prevalence and factors associated with common mental health conditions among female sex workers in Dar es salaam, Tanzania"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"3","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-6546-0452","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Edwin Ngula","family":"Luguku","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-8626-0512","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Aloyce George","family":"Mlyomi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0005-6710-6832","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Nasrath","family":"Fadhili","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-3305-6163","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Bonus L.","family":"Caesar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Samuel L.","family":"Likindikoki","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Manasi","family":"Kumar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Anne","family":"Obondo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,15]]},"reference":[{"key":"pmen.0000523.ref001","article-title":"Integration of mental health and HIV interventions: Key considerations","author":"UNAIDS, WHO","year":"2022"},{"key":"pmen.0000523.ref002","article-title":"Sex Work and HIV\/AIDS: Technical Update","author":"UNAIDS","year":"2002"},{"key":"pmen.0000523.ref003","article-title":"Project Shikamana: Baseline Findings From a Community Empowerment-Based Combination HIV Prevention Trial Among Female Sex Workers in Iringa, Tanzania","author":"D Kerrigan","year":"2017","journal-title":"J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr"},{"issue":"12","key":"pmen.0000523.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1409","DOI":"10.1080\/13691058.2018.1438667","article-title":"\u201cYou already drank my beer, I can decide anything\u201d: using structuration theory to explore the dynamics of alcohol use, gender-based violence and HIV risk among female sex workers in Tanzania","volume":"20","author":"AM Leddy","year":"2018","journal-title":"Cult Health Sex"},{"issue":"12","key":"pmen.0000523.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjgh-2023-013662","article-title":"Early disengagement from HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis services and associated factors among female sex workers in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: a socioecological approach","volume":"8","author":"HO Lichtwarck","year":"2023","journal-title":"BMJ Glob Health"},{"key":"pmen.0000523.ref006","article-title":"R.E.S.P.E.C.T: Preventing violence against women how to use the RESPECT framework implementation guide","author":"UN Women, WHO","year":"2019"},{"key":"pmen.0000523.ref007","unstructured":"UN Women, ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, OHCHR, et al. 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