Abstract
Among migrants who arrived in the USA and Europe, communicable diseases such as dermatologic, gastrointestinal, and respiratory infections are frequent; non-communicable diseases including chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, and vaccine-preventable diseases are also prevalent. Refugees are often not up to date on routine immunizations and screenings for chronic diseases and cancer. In addition, many immigrants have trauma-related mental health problems, which are often not addressed by the healthcare systems where they reside. Determining the healthcare needs of specific immigration groups should lead to the establishment of evidence-based guidelines for providing screening and healthcare services to immigrant populations, for the benefit of the individuals concerned, as well as the host countries.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Titzmann PF, Fuligni AJ. Immigrants’ adaptation to different cultural settings: A contextual perspective on acculturation: Introduction for the special section on immigration Titzmann and Fuligni. Int J Psychol. 2015;50(6):407–12.
Mishori R, Aleinikoff S, Davis D. Primary Care for Refugees: Challenges and Opportunities. Am Fam Physician. 2017;96:112–20.
Pavli A, Maltezou H. Health problems of newly arrived migrants and refugees in Europe. Journal of Travel Medicine. 2017;24.
Reavell J, Fazil Q. The epidemiology of PTSD and depression in refugee minors who have resettled in developed countries. J Ment Health. 2017;26:74–83.
Rosenthal T. The effect of migration on hypertension and other cardiovascular risk factors: A review. Journal of the American Society of Hypertension. 2014;8:171–91.
Farahati J, Nagarajah J, Gilman E, Mahjoob S, Zohreh M, Rosenbaum-Krumme S, et al. Ethnicity, Clothing Style, and Body Mass Index are Significant Predictors of Vitamin D Insufficiency in Germany. Endocr Pract [Internet]. 2015;21(2):122–7. Available from: http://journals.aace.com/doi/abs/10.4158/EP14320.OR
Tastan Y, Kann PH, Tinneberg HR, Hadji P, Müller-Ladner U, Lange U. Low bone mineral density and vitamin d deficiency correlated with genetics and other bone markers in female Turkish immigrants in Germany. Clin Rheumatol. 2016;35(11):2789–95.
Morawa E, Erim Y. Acculturation and depressive symptoms among Turkish immigrants in Germany. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2014;11(9):9503–21.
Vardar A, Kluge U, Penka S. How to express mental health problems: Turkish immigrants in Berlin compared to native Germans in Berlin and Turks in Istanbul. Eur Psychiatry. 2012;27(SUPPL.2):S50–5.
Häsler R, Kautz C, Rehman A, Podschun R, Gassling V, Brzoska P, et al. The antibiotic resistome and microbiota landscape of refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan in Germany. Microbiome. 2018;6(1):37.
Méjean C, Traissac P, Eymard-Duvernay S, Delpeuch F, Maire B. Influence of acculturation among Tunisian migrants in France and their past/present exposure to the home country on diet and physical activity. Public Health Nutr. 2009;12(6):832–41.
Kanas A, van Tubergen F. The conditional returns to origin-country human capital among Turkish and Moroccan immigrants in Belgium. Soc Sci Res. 2014;46:130–41.
Daw MA, El-Bouzedi A, Ahmed MO, Dau AA, Agnan MM. Epidemiology of hepatitis C virus and genotype distribution in immigrants crossing to Europe from North and sub-Saharan Africa. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2016;14(5):517–26.
Agyemang C, Kieft S, Snijder MB, Beune EJ, Van Den Born BJ, Brewster LM, et al. Hypertension control in a large multi-ethnic cohort in Amsterdam, The Netherlands: The HELIUS study. Int J Cardiol. 2015;183:180–9.
Teunissen E, Van Bavel E, Van Den Driessen Mareeuw F, et al. Mental health problems of undocumented migrants in the Netherlands: A qualitative exploration of recognition, recording, and treatment by general practitioners. Scand J Prim Health Care. 2015;33(2):82–90. https://doi.org/10.3109/02813432.2015.1041830.
Pacelli B, Zengarini N, Broccoli S, Caranci N, Spadea T, Di Girolamo C, et al. Differences in mortality by immigrant status in Italy. Results of the Italian Network of Longitudinal Metropolitan Studies. Eur J Epidemiol. 2016;31(7):691–701.
Minetti S, Raffetti E, Lodi-Rizzini F, Facchetti S, Schlanser E, Colombo E, et al. Respiratory allergy in immigrants to a highly industrialised area in Italy according to area of origin and time period. Allergol Immunopathol (Madr). 2015;43(5):461–8.
Salvatore MA, Baglio G, Cacciani L, Spagnolo A, Rosano A. Work-related injuries among immigrant workers in Italy. J Immigr Minor Health. 2013;15(1):182–7.
Europe’s responsibility to refugees. Health beyond borders. Lancet. 2014;384(9939):208.
Moullan Y, Jusot F. Why is the “healthy immigrant effect” different between European countries? Eur J Pub Health 2014;24(SUPPL.1):80–86.
Ghobadzadeh M, Demerath EW, Tura Y. Prevalence of Blood Pressure, Blood Glucose and Serum Lipids Abnormalities Among Ethiopian Immigrants: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study. J Immigr Minor Health. 2015;17(4):1070–7.
Masri A, Senussi MH. Trump’s Executive Order on Immigration — Detrimental Effects on Medical Training and Health Care. N Engl J Med [Internet]. 2017;376(19):e39. Available from: http://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJMp1701251
Amuedo-Dorantes C, Pozo S. On the Intended and Unintended Consequences of Enhanced U.S. Border and Interior Immigration Enforcement: Evidence From Mexican Deportees. Demography. 2014;51(6):2255–79.
Reingle JM, Caetano R, Mills BA, Vaeth PA. The role of immigration age on alcohol and drug use among border and non-border Mexican. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2014;38(7):2080–2086.
Hilario CT, Oliffe JL, Wong JP, Browne AJ, Johnson JL. “Just as Canadian as Anyone Else”? Experiences of Second-Class Citizenship and the Mental Health of Young Immigrant and Refugee Men in Canada. Am J Mens Health. 2018;12(2):210–20.
Jaffe A, Giveon S, Wulffhart L, Oberman B, Freedman L, Ziv A, et al. Diabetes among ethiopian immigrants to Israel: Exploring the effects of migration and ethnicity on diabetes risk. PLoS One. 2016;11(6):e0157354.
Alpak G, Unal A, Bulbul F, Sagaltici E, Bez Y, Altindag A, et al. Post-traumatic stress disorder among Syrian refugees in Turkey: A cross-sectional study. Int J Psychiatry Clin Pract [Internet]. 2015;19(1):45–50. Available from: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84924068705&doi=10.3109%2F13651501.2014.961930&partnerID=40&md5=4cdac79c416903b591dd11a10d960ce8 NS -
Ibrahim H, Hassan CQ. Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms resulting from torture and other traumatic events among Syrian Kurdish refugees in Kurdistan Region. Iraq Front Psychol. 2017;8:241.
Mockenhaupt FP, Barbre KA, Jensenius M, Larsen CS, Barnett ED, Stauffer W, et al. Profile of illness in syrian refugees: A geosentinel analysis, 2013 to 2015. Eurosurveillance. 2016;21(10):30160.
Hayani K, Dandashli A, Weisshaar E. Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Syria: Clinical Features, Current Status and the Effects of War. Acta Derm Venereol. 2015;95(1):62–6.
Leblebicioglu H, Ozaras R. Syrian refugees and infectious disease challenges. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2015;13(6):443–4.
Cookson ST, Abaza H, Clarke KR, Burton A, Sabrah NA, Rumman KA, et al. Impact of and response to increased tuberculosis prevalence among Syrian refugees compared with Jordanian tuberculosis prevalence: Case study of a tuberculosis public health strategy. Confl Heal. 2015;9:18.
Hvass AMF, Wejse C. Systematic health screening of refugees after resettlement in recipient countries: a scoping review. Ann Hum Biol. 2017;44(5):475–83.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The author declares no conflicts of interest relevant to this manuscript.
Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent
This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rosenthal, T. Immigration and Acculturation: Impact on Health and Well-Being of Immigrants. Curr Hypertens Rep 20, 70 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11906-018-0872-0
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11906-018-0872-0