Tuberculosis Case Finding Based on Symptom Screening Among Immigrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Rome

Overview

Journal BMC Public Health

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialty Public Health

Date 2013 Sep 24

PMID 24053349

Citations 6

Authors

Monica Sane Schepisi

Gina Gualano

Claudia Fellus

Nazario Bevilacqua

Marco Vecchi

Pierluca Piselli

Giuliana Battagin

Giulia Silvestrini

Andrea Attanasio

Alberto Vela

Giorgia Rocca

Alessandro Rinaldi

Pietro Benedetti

Salvatore Geraci

Francesco Nicola Lauria

Enrico Girardi

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: In Italy the proportion of cases of tuberculosis in persons originating from high-prevalence countries has been increasing in the last decade. We designed a study to assess adherence to and yield of a tuberculosis screening programme based on symptom screening conducted at primary care centres for regular and irregular immigrants and refugees/asylum seekers.

Methods: Presence of symptoms suggestive of active tuberculosis was investigated by verbal screening in migrants presenting for any medical condition to 3 free primary care centres in the province of Rome. Individuals reporting at least one symptom were referred to a tuberculosis clinic for diagnostic workup.

Results: Among 2142 migrants enrolled, 254 (11.9%) reported at least one symptom suggestive of active tuberculosis and 176 were referred to the tuberculosis clinic. Of them, 80 (45.4%) did not present for diagnostic evaluation. Tuberculosis was diagnosed in 7 individuals representing 0.33% of those screened and 7.3% of those evaluated for tuberculosis.

Conclusion: The overall yield of this intervention was in the range reported for other tuberculosis screening programmes for migrants, although we recorded an unsatisfactory adherence to diagnostic workup. Possible advantages of this intervention include low cost and reduced burden of medical procedures for the screened population. Further evaluation of this approach appears to be warranted.

Citing Articles

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Active and latent tuberculosis in refugees and asylum seekers: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Proenca R, Souza F, Bastos M, Caetano R, Braga J, Faerstein E BMC Public Health. 2020; 20(1):838.

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Factors Associated with Participation in Pulmonary Tuberculosis Screening Using Chest X-Ray among Diabetes Mellitus Type II Patients in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.

Putra I, Astuti P, Suarjana I, Mulyawan K, Duana I, Kurniasari N Tuberc Res Treat. 2018; 2018:9285195.

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The Occurrence of Diseases and Related Factors in a Center for Asylum Seekers in Italy.

Firenze A, Aleo N, Ferrara C, Maranto M, La Cascia C, Restivo V Zdr Varst. 2016; 55(1):21-8.

PMID: 27647085 PMC: 4820178. DOI: 10.1515/sjph-2016-0003.

Active Tuberculosis Case Finding Interventions Among Immigrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Italy.

Sane Schepisi M, Gualano G, Piselli P, Mazza M, DAngelo D, Fasciani F Infect Dis Rep. 2016; 8(2):6594.

PMID: 27403270 PMC: 4927939. DOI: 10.4081/idr.2016.6594.

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