OBJECTIVE: To discover the prevalence of 4 preventable and treatable diseases among newly arriving refugees. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: An immigrant-friendly family medicine centre in Ottawa, Ont, that offers newly arriving refugees a clinical preventive program following a specially designed protocol. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 112 adult government-assisted refugees seen during 2004 and 2005 within 6 months of arrival. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Demographic information and prevalence of HIV infection, latent tuberculosis (TB), chronic hepatitis B surface antigen-positive status, and intestinal parasites. RESULTS Descriptive analysis revealed that 71% of the adults were younger than 35 years and 83% of them had come from sub-Saharan Africa. Disease prevalence rates were 6.3% for HIV (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.8 to 10.8), 49.5% for latent TB (95% CI 39.5 to 49.8), 5.4% for chronic hepatitis B surface antigen-positive status (95% CI 1.2 to 9.5), and 13.6% for intestinal parasites (95% CI 7.2 to 20.0). Most refugees (83%) successfully completed the preventive care program. Performing χ2 analysis revealed a statistically significant higher risk of latent TB among the men (P < .032). Most of the women had never had a Papanicolaou test. CONCLUSION: Refugees are a vulnerable population with unique, but often preventable or treatable, health issues. This study demonstrated substantial differences in the prevalence of HIV, TB, chronic hepatitis B, and intestinal parasites between government-assisted refugees and Canadian residents. These health disparities and the emerging field of health settlement are new challenges for family physicians and other primary health care providers.

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Vulnerable Populations vulnerable population immigrant parasitosis HIV Infections Africa south of the Sahara refugee Human immunodeficiency virus infection mass screening methodology chi square test sex ratio human risk assessment Refugees sex difference statistics Cohort Studies controlled study screening test Government Programs United States Humans lung tuberculosis Adolescent male Canada Tuberculosis, Pulmonary female tuberculosis primary prevention Africa medical information prevalence Article Retrospective Studies prophylaxis adult Hepatitis B, Chronic major clinical study infection risk government Sex Distribution Papanicolaou Test age distribution cohort analysis hepatitis B surface antigen retrospective study hepatitis B family medicine intestine parasite primary health care