title: Rising number of tuberculosis cases among Tibetans in New York City.
abstract: Tuberculosis among Tibetans increased in New York City between 1995 and 1999. We examined characteristics of 68 Tibetan patients compared to 702 non-Tibetan patients from Nepal, India, or China, diagnosed between January 1995 and December 1999. The number of Tibetan patients increased each year after 1995 whereas non-Tibetans remained stable during the same period. Tibetans were younger (27 vs. 44 years), more likely to be infectious (63% vs. 46%), have multidrug resistance (7% vs. 2%) and shorter time to diagnosis after arrival (9 vs. 79 months, p < 0.01). For Tibetan patients, 68% of identified contacts were evaluated. The prevalence of tuberculosis infection was 65%. In contrast, among non-Tibetan patients 88.8% of contacts were evaluated and 45.2% were infected. Outreach efforts with community leaders and educational presentations at community events have been implemented in an effort to ensure continuity of care and completion of treatment.
authors.affiliation: Tuberculosis Control Program, New York City Department of Health, New York 10013, USA.
authors.forename: Y A
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: S S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Munsiff
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: C R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Driver
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mathema
authors.forename: B N
authors.initials: BN
authors.lastname: Kreiswirth