The level of immigration from high tuberculosis (TB) burden countries (HBCs) which impacts on the foreign-born TB notification rate is largely unknown. In this work, we performed a cross-sectional analysis of epidemiological data from 2000 to 2013 from nine European countries: Austria, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Crude notification rates were calculated for foreign- and native-born populations and a multiple-linear regression model predicting notification rates with HBC population data was generated. From 2000 to 2013, the population percentage with a foreign birthplace increased on average each year in all nine countries, ranging from +0.11%/year in the Netherlands to +0.66%/year in Spain. An annual increase in HBC migrants above +0.43% per year (95% Confidence Interval: 0.24%–0.63%) corresponded with higher TB notification rates in the foreign-born population of the countries analyzed. This indicates that migration from HBCs can exert a measurable effect on the foreign-born TB notification rate. However, an increase in the foreign-born TB notification rate coincided with an average annual rise in national TB notification rates only in countries, Norway (+3.85%/year) and Sweden (+2.64%/year), which have a high proportion (>80%) of TB cases that are foreign-born. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd

High TB burden country Migration tuberculosis

Netherlands Finland Norway population Europe indigenous people human trends Denmark statistics and numerical data priority journal Austria population growth Hungary Cross-Sectional Studies Sweden cross-sectional study migrant Humans Epidemiological Monitoring Emigrants and Immigrants Spain tuberculosis Incidence Article Disease Notification migration United Kingdom Emigration and Immigration Linear Models statistical model health statistics population migration health survey