Between 1987 and 1990, 162 new immigrants entering Switzerland were treated for tuberculosis at the TB Dispensary, Lausanne. Fifty-three were smear or culture positive. In 93% of the cases, the diagnosis was suspected at a screening examination for TB shortly after arrival in Switzerland. The diagnosis of TB was established on the basis of radiological abnormalities and the results of bacteriology and the clinical and/or radiological course under treatment. The prevalence of TB was 174.3 cases per 100,000 among foreign workers and 1357.5 per 100,000 among refugees in the group of immigrants entering the Canton of Vaud. Symptoms related to TB were mentioned by 18% of patients, clinical abnormalities were noted in 7.4%. The tuberculin test was positive (>10 mm) in 94% of patients. Thirty patients, including six smear or culture positive cases, were lost to follow-up or stopped treatment before the scheduled end. A policy of active screening for TB among new immigrants allows detection at an early stage and, in combination with proper treatment, should prevent extension of the disease within groups of immigrants.

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refugee radiography human Refugees Cohort Studies priority journal lung tuberculosis Adolescent tuberculostatic agent male female tuberculosis prevalence Article major clinical study adult tuberculin test migration thorax radiography cohort analysis Emigration and Immigration Radiography, Thoracic Switzerland English Abstract