Biomaterial Database

Tuberculin reactivity in United States and foreign-born Latinos: results of a community-based screening program. 1986

E J Perez-Stable, and G Slutkin, and E A Paz, and P C Hopewell

Because of the concern that we were underestimating the prevalence of tuberculosis within the Latino community in San Francisco, we undertook a community-based screening program directed largely towards recent immigrants. Of 1,871 intermediate-strength (5 TU) tuberculin tests applied and read, 37 per cent of the reactions were greater than or equal to 10 mm. Significant reactions were found in 53 per cent of foreign-born persons compared to 7 per cent of those born in the United States. Persons older than 20 years of age were more likely to have significant reactions compared to younger Latinos. Among the foreign-born, the frequency of significant reactions was not influenced by the length of stay in the US or a history of BCG (bacille Calmette-Guérain) vaccination. Two foreign-born children were found to have current tuberculosis. The prevalence of tuberculin reactors among US-born Latino children was 3 per cent, which suggests that undetected transmission of tuberculosis may be occurring. We conclude that Latino immigrants should be systematically screened for tuberculosis.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007223	Infant	A child between 1 and 23 months of age.	Infants
D008297	Male		Males
D008800	Mexico	A country in NORTH AMERICA, bordering the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, between BELIZE and the UNITED STATES, and bordering the North Pacific Ocean, between Guatemala and the UNITED STATES.
D008875	Middle Aged	An adult aged 45 - 64 years.	Middle Age
D002140	California	State bounded on the east by Nevada and Arizona, on the south by Mexico and the Pacific Ocean on the south and west, and on the north by Oregon.
D002489	Central America	A region of southern NORTH AMERICA extending from the southern border of MEXICO to the northern border of COLOMBIA. It separates the Caribbean Sea from the Pacific Ocean and is linked to SOUTH AMERICA by the Isthmus of Panama.
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D002675	Child, Preschool	A child between the ages of 2 and 5.	Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D004641	Emigration and Immigration	The process of leaving one's country to establish residence in a foreign country.	Immigration,Labor Migration,Border Crossing,Chain Migration,Emigration,In-Migration,International Migration,Out-Migration,Return Migration,Settlement and Resettlement,Temporary Migration,Turnaround Migration,Border Crossings,Chain Migrations,Crossing, Border,Crossings, Border,Emigrations,Immigration and Emigration,Immigrations,In Migration,In-Migrations,International Migrations,Labor Migrations,Migration, Chain,Migration, International,Migration, Labor,Migration, Return,Migration, Temporary,Migration, Turnaround,Migrations, Chain,Migrations, International,Migrations, Labor,Migrations, Return,Migrations, Temporary,Migrations, Turnaround,Out Migration,Out-Migrations,Resettlement and Settlement,Return Migrations,Temporary Migrations,Turnaround Migrations
D004812	Epidemiologic Methods	Research techniques that focus on study designs and data gathering methods in human and animal populations.	Epidemiologic Method,Epidemiological Methods,Methods, Epidemiologic,Epidemiological Method,Method, Epidemiologic,Method, Epidemiological,Methods, Epidemiological