Prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis among expatriates subjected to medical visa screening in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Farida I. Al Hosani; Ghada A. Yahia

doi:10.1016/j.jegh.2012.12.003

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Volume 3, Issue 1, March 2013, Pages 23 - 30

Prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis among expatriates subjected to medical visa screening in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Authors

Farida I. Al Hosani^*^,falhosani@haad.ae, Ghada A. Yahiagyahia@haad.ae

Communicable Diseases Department, Health Authority of Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE

^*Corresponding author. Address: P.O. Box 5674, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Tel.: +971 2 4193208, mobile: +971 50 5615121; fax: +971 2 4496966.

Corresponding Author

Farida I. Al Hosanifalhosani@haad.ae

Received 13 June 2012, Revised 4 December 2012, Accepted 5 December 2012, Available Online 1 February 2013.

DOI: 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.12.003 How to use a DOI?
Keywords: Tuberculosis; Visa screening; Expatriates population; Prevalence
Abstract: Introduction: All applicants for work and/or residence in Abu Dhabi are screened for tuberculosis at the time of issuing or renewing their residence visa. The purpose of this study is to assess the prevalence of TB among visa applicants and the likelihood of testing positive among different subgroups.

Methods: Data from the electronic visa screening system was used for a total of 948,504 applicants screened for residence in Abu Dhabi from January to December 2010.

Results: The screening identified 4577 suspected cases of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB); 1558 people with chest X-ray findings suggestive of prior PTB; 235 smear-positives; and 132 culture-positive cases. The prevalence of active PTB was 39/100,000, with new applicants significantly more likely to test positive compared with renewals (OR: 2.05, 95% CI: 1.5–2.7, P < .001). People coming from African countries had the highest prevalence of TB compared with people from other regions (OR: 21.25, 95% CI: 6.72–67.17, P < .001).

Conclusion: The number of active PTB cases among applicants for visa screening is still of a real concern. Without a rigorous screening system, the disease can spread to the community and hit other people. Certain subgroups were more likely to have the disease; this could provide the scientific foundation for future amendments in the screening requirements.
Copyright: © 2012 Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Open Access: This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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Journal: Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue: 3 - 1
Pages: 23 - 30
Publication Date: 2013/02/01
ISSN (Online): 2210-6014
ISSN (Print): 2210-6006
DOI: 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.12.003 How to use a DOI?
Open Access: This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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ris enw bib

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Farida I. Al Hosani
AU  - Ghada A. Yahia
PY  - 2013
DA  - 2013/02/01
TI  - Prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis among expatriates subjected to medical visa screening in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 23
EP  - 30
VL  - 3
IS  - 1
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jegh.2012.12.003
DO  - 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.12.003
ID  - AlHosani2013
ER  -

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