A migration-specific approach was used in the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) and thus it was possible for the first time to include children with a migration background in a nationwide health survey in Germany in a number corresponding to their percentage of the population. This article presents the migration-specific approach used in KiGGS as well as a definition of the term .,migrant" and its operationalisation. In addition, we analyse the representativity of the migrant subsample and present data on its composition. Altogether 2,590 children and adolescents with a migration background (both parents) took part in the study; in the weighted sample they account for 17.1% of all children and adolescents. Another 8.3% of the children and adolescents have one parent with a migration background. The two largest groups among the migrant children are Germans from Russia (29.9%) and children and adolescents of Turkish origin (28.2%). There are differences between migrants and non-migrants related to socio-economic status and place of living (rural/urban and East/West). Analyses of the representativity of the migrant sample show that children and adolescents with a lower level of education are under-represented, whereas there were no differences with regard to sex, the fathers' occupation or the mothers' smoking status. Non-respondents rate their children's health better than respondents. Since the successful integration of children and adolescents with a migration background into the KiGGS study brings with it a sufficiently large number of cases and since KiGGS covers a wide range of health-related topics, comprehensive migration-specific analyses can be performed. Thus, KiGGS will contribute to filling some of the current gaps in our knowledge of migrant children's health. © Springer Medizin Verlag 2007.

Migration Adolescents Health survey Children

Russia Germany mass screening human statistics Turkey (republic) pediatrics Health Surveys ethnology Humans medicine Adolescent Acculturation preschool child Infant Child, Preschool Socioeconomic Factors socioeconomics cultural factor Health Status Indicators Article Adolescent Medicine migration Turkey Emigration and Immigration Russian Federation Child health survey