Immigrant Mortality Research Articles

Mortality of immigrants in Tuscany Region (Central Italy), 1997-2013

to evaluate mortality in immigrants dwelling in Tuscany Region (Central Italy) compared to mortality data relating to the Italian population residing in the same region. cross-sectional descriptive mortality study relying on a unique data source, i.e., the Regional Mortality Registry of Tuscany, for the period 1997-2013. in the analysis, immigrants residing in Tuscany were included; Italian residing in the same region were the comparison population. Immigrants were divided into two categories: immigrants from Countries at High Migration Rates (CHMRs) and immigrants from Developed Countries (DCs). proportional general and cause-specific mortality by age and gender for the period 1997-2013; trends of standardized truncated (age 20-64) mortality rates for the Italian population, and for immigrants from CHMRs and from DCs for the period 2002-2013; standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) in people from CHMRs with confidence interval at 95% (95%CI) for all causes and cause-specific mortality. during 1997-2013, 4,681 deaths were recorded among immigrants, 3,005 of which were in immigrants from a CHMR. Both cause-specific and general mortality trends in Italians and in immigrants from DCs are lowering, while general mortality of immigrants from CHMRs seems to have risen in the last 5 years. Mortality of people from CHMRs for all causes, cardiovascular causes, and cancer is permanently lower than Italian population's mortality in the examined period, but the gap seems to progressively reduce. On the other hand, child mortality among immigrants from CHMRs, despite a declining trend, is consistently higher than Italian population's mortality. Following the SMR analysis, the only exceeding cause of mortality in people from CHMRs - compared to the Italian population - is homicide among men (SMR: 3.46; 95%CI 1.55-5.59). this study updates our knowledge on immigrants' mortality - and, indirectly, on their health status - in Tuscany. The gap between mortality of Italians and immigrants from CHMRs is reducing: this could be partially explained by a successful ongoing integration process. For future analyses, it would be important to obtain more complete data relative to non-resident immigrants' mortality, as their number is constantly increasing.

Differences in mortality by immigrant status in Italy. Results of the Italian Network of Longitudinal Metropolitan Studies.

Despite a rapid increase in immigration from low-income countries, studies on immigrants' mortality in Italy are scarce. We aimed to describe differences in all and cause-specific mortality among immigrants and Italians residing in Turin and Reggio Emilia (Northern Italy), two cities participating in the Italian Network of Longitudinal Metropolitan Studies (IN-LiMeS). We used individual data from the municipal population registers linked to the cause of death registers. All people aged 1-64years residing between 2001 and 2010 were enrolled (open cohort) and followed up until 2013. The mortality of citizens from high migratory pressure countries (as a whole, and for each macro-area group) was compared with that of Italians; differences were estimated by Poisson regression adjusted by age and calendar year mortality rate ratios (MRRs), and by age-standardized mortality ratios for the analysis of cause-specific mortality. Compared with Italians, immigrants had lower overall mortality (MRR for men: 0.82, 95% CI: 0.75-0.90; for women: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.63-0.81). Sub-Saharan Africans experienced a significant higher mortality than Italians (MRR for men 1.29, 95% CI: 1.03-1.61; for women: 1.70, 95% CI: 1.22-2.36). Higher mortality for immigrants compared to Italians was observed for infectious diseases, congenital anomalies, some site-specific tumours and homicide mortality. Our study showed heterogeneity in mortality across the macro-areas of origin, and in particular Sub-Saharan Africans seemed to be a vulnerable population. The extension to other cohorts of IN-LiMeS will allow the health status of immigrants and vulnerable groups to be studied and monitored in more depth.

Marginalisation, discrimination and the health of Latino immigrant day labourers in a central North Carolina community.

The morbidity and mortality of Latino immigrants in the United States (US) stem from a complex mix of policy, culture, discrimination and economics. Immigrants working as day labourers may be particularly vulnerable to the negative influences of these social factors due to limited access to social, financial and legal resources. We aimed to understand how the health of male Latino day labourers in North Carolina, US is influenced by their experiences interacting with their community and perceptions of their social environment. To respond to our research questions, we conducted three focus groups (n=9, n=10, n=10) and a photovoice project (n=5) with Latino male immigrants between October 2013 and March 2014. We conducted a thematic analysis of transcripts from the discussions in the focus groups and the group discussions with Photovoice participants. We found that men's health and well-being were primarily shaped by their experiences and feelings of discrimination and marginalisation. We identified three main links between discrimination/marginalisation and poor health: (i) dangerous work resulted in workplace injuries or illnesses; (ii) unsteady employment caused stress, anxiety and insufficient funds for healthcare; and (iii) exclusionary policies and treatment resulted in limited healthcare accessibility. Health promotion with Latino immigrant men in new settlement areas could benefit from community-building activities, addressing discrimination, augmenting the reach of formal healthcare and building upon the informal mechanisms that immigrants rely on to meet their health needs. Reforms to immigration and labour policies are also essential to addressing these structural barriers to health for these men.

Association Between Socioeconomic Status and Mortality, Cardiovascular Disease, and Cancer in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes.

The association between socioeconomic status and survival based on all-cause, cardiovascular (CV), diabetes-related, and cancer mortality in type 2 diabetes has not been examined in a setting of persons with equitable access to health care with adjustment for important confounders. To determine whether income, educational level, marital status, and country of birth are independently associated with all-cause, CV, diabetes-related, and cancer mortality in persons with type 2 diabetes. A study including all 217 364 individuals younger than 70 years with type 2 diabetes in the Sweden National Diabetes Register (January 1, 2003, to December 31, 2010) who were monitored through December 31, 2012, was conducted. A Cox proportional hazards regression model with up to 17 covariates was used for analysis. All-cause, CV, diabetes-related, and cancer mortality. Of the 217 364 persons included in the study, mean (SD) age was 58.3 (9.3) years and 130 839 of the population (60.2%) was male. There were a total of 19 105 all-cause deaths with 11 423 (59.8%), 6984 (36.6%), and 6438 (33.7%) CV, diabetes-related, or cancer deaths, respectively. Compared with being single, hazard ratios (HRs) for married individuals, determined using fully adjusted models, for all-cause, CV, and diabetes-related mortality were 0.73 (95% CI, 0.70-0.77), 0.67 (95% CI, 0.63-0.71), and 0.62 (95% CI, 0.57-0.67), respectively. Marital status was not associated with overall cancer mortality, but married men had a 33% lower risk of prostate cancer mortality compared with single men, with an HR of 0.67 (95% CI, 0.50-0.90). Comparison of HRs for the lowest vs highest income quintiles for all-cause, CV, diabetes-related, and cancer mortality were 1.71 (95% CI, 1.60-1.83), 1.87 (95% CI, 1.72-2.05), 1.80 (95% CI, 1.61-2.01), and 1.28 (95% CI, 1.14-1.44), respectively. Compared with native Swedes, HRs for all-cause, CV, diabetes-related, and cancer mortality for non-Western immigrants were 0.55 (95% CI, 0.48-0.63), 0.46 (95% CI, 0.38-0.56), 0.38 (95% CI, 0.29-0.49), and 0.72 (95% CI, 0.58-0.88), respectively, and these HRs were virtually unaffected by covariate adjustment. Hazard ratios for those with a college/university degree compared with 9 years or less of education were 0.85 (95% CI, 0.80-0.90), 0.84 (95% CI, 0.78-0.91), and 0.84 (95% CI, 0.76-0.93) for all-cause, CV, and cancer mortality, respectively. Independent of risk factors, access to health care, and use of health care, socioeconomic status is a powerful predictor of all-cause and CV mortality but was not as strong as a predictor of death from cancer.

Mortality among immigrants in England and Wales by major causes of death, 1971–2012: A longitudinal analysis of register-based data

Recent research has found a migrant mortality advantage among immigrants relative to the UK-born population living in England and Wales. However, while all-cause mortality is useful to show differences in mortality between immigrants and the host population, it can mask variation in mortality patterns from specific causes of death. This study analyses differences in the causes of death among immigrants living in England and Wales. We extend previous research by applying competing-risks survival analysis to study a large-scale longitudinal dataset from 1971 to 2012 to directly compare causes of death. We confirm low all-cause mortality among nearly all immigrants, except immigrants from Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland (who have high mortality). In most cases, low all-cause mortality among immigrants is driven by lower mortality from chronic diseases (in nearly all cases by lower cancer mortality and in some cases by lower mortality from cardiovascular diseases (CVD)). This low all-cause mortality often coexists with low respiratory disease mortality and among non-western immigrants, coexists with high mortality from infectious diseases; however, these two causes of death contribute little to mortality among immigrants. For men, CVD is the leading cause of death (particularly among South Asians). For women, cancer is the leading cause of death (except among South Asians, for whom CVD is also the leading cause). Differences in CVD mortality over time remain constant between immigrants relative to UK-born, but immigrant cancer patterns shows signs of some convergence to the cancer mortality among the UK-born (though cancer mortality is still low among immigrants by age 80). The study provides the most up-to-date, reliable UK-based analysis of immigrant mortality.

Mortality in adult immigrants in the 2000s in Belgium: a test of the 'healthy-migrant' and the 'migration-as-rapid-health-transition' hypotheses.

Firstly, to map out and compare all-cause and cause-specific mortality patterns by migrant background in Belgium; and secondly, to probe into explanations for the observed patterns, more specifically into the healthy-migrant, acculturation and the migration-as-rapid-health-transition theories. Data comprise individually linked Belgian census-mortality follow-up data for the period 2001-2011. All official inhabitants aged 25-54 at time of the census were included. To delve into the different explanations, differences in all-cause and chronic- and infectious-disease mortality were estimated using Poisson regression models, adjusted for age, socioeconomic position and urbanicity. First-generation immigrants have lower all-cause and chronic-disease mortality than the host population. This mortality advantage wears off with length of stay and is more marked among non-Western than Western first-generation immigrants. For example, Western and non-Western male immigrants residing 10 years or more in Belgium have a mortality rate ratio for cardiovascular disease of 0.72 (95% CI 0.66-0.78) and 0.59 (95% CI 0.53-0.66), respectively (vs host population). The pattern of infectious-disease mortality in migrants is slightly different, with rather high mortality rates in first-generation sub-Saharan Africans and rather low rates in all other immigrant groups. As for second-generation immigrants, the picture is gloomier, with a mortality disadvantage that disappears after control for socioeconomic position. Findings are largely consistent with the healthy-migrant, acculturation and the migration-as-rapid-health-transition theories. The convergence of the mortality profile of second-generation immigrants towards that of the host population with similar socioeconomic position indicates the need for policies simultaneously addressing different areas of deprivation.

A Systematic Review of the Physical, Mental, Social, and Economic Problems of Immigrant Women in the Perinatal Period in Japan.

The perinatal mortality of immigrants in Japan is higher than that of Japanese women. However, details of the problems of immigrant perinatal women that contribute to worsening of their health are still unknown. This review describes the physical, psychological, social, and economic problems of immigrant women during the perinatal period in Japan. Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Igaku-Chuo Zasshi were searched and 36 relevant articles were reviewed. The related descriptions were collected and analyzed by using content analysis. The results showed that immigrant perinatal women in Japan experienced the following problems: language barriers, a problematic relationship with a partner, illegal residency, emotional distress, physical distress, adjustment difficulties, lack of utilization of services, social isolation, lack of support, lack of information, low economic status, unsatisfactory health care, and discrimination. These results indicated that multilingual services, strengthening of social and support networks, and political action are necessary to resolve their problems.

Immigration, ethnicity, and avoidable mortality in Canada, 1991–2006

Objective. Avoidable mortality is a well-recognized, but less studied indicator of the performance of the health system. First, the study seeks to establish whether immigrants overall and selected foreign-born ethnic groups (Western Europeans, South Asians, Chinese, and Filipinos) have an advantage over nonimmigrants in avoidable mortality. Second, it assesses the effect of sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors on any observed differences by duration of residence.Design. Deaths grouped by cause of death and by behavioral risk factors, namely smoking-related and alcohol-related, were derived from the 1991 Canadian Census Cohort: Mortality and Cancer Follow-up. The analysis estimated age-standardized mortality rates (ASMRs), rate ratios, and rate differences and also fitted hazard regression models for the overall Canadian-born population and for selected foreign-born ethnicities by sex. Predictors were assessed at baseline.Results. Compared to the Canadian-born persons, foreign-born men and women had lower ASMRs for overall avoidable mortality and also for selected causes of avoidable mortality. The only exception to this overall trend was for ischemic heart disease among South Asian women. Except for the order of prominence, the three leading causes of death for nonimmigrant and immigrant men and women overall were ischemic heart diseases, smoking-related diseases, and neoplasms. A similar pattern was observed among the ethnic groups, except for circulatory heart diseases replacing ischemic heart diseases and smoking-related diseases among Chinese and Filipino women, respectively. In the hazard regression analysis, the risk of avoidable mortality was lower for immigrants overall and selected ethnicities irrespective of the duration in Canada compared to nonimmigrants. These differences persisted even with adjustment for sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors.Conclusion. Immigrants overall and the selected ethnicities enjoy an advantage over nonimmigrants in avoidable mortality. However, for certain causes of death especially ischemic heart disease mortality among South Asian women, immigrants appeared worse-off than nonimmigrants. The results suggest differential access to and use of health services, differences in protective health-related behavior, and the healthy immigrant effect.

Immigrant Latino neighborhoods and mortality among infants born to Mexican-origin Latina women.

To compare the association between neighborhood Latino immigrant concentration and infant mortality by maternal nativity among singleton births to Mexican-origin women in Los Angeles County. Information about births, infant deaths, and infant and maternal characteristics were obtained from geocoded Los Angeles County vital statistics records (2002-2005). Linked data on neighborhood characteristics (census tracts) were obtained from the 2000 census. Logistic regression models were used to predict infant mortality while accounting for spatial clustering by census tract. Two-thirds of births to Mexican-origin mothers were to foreign-born women. Foreign-born mothers were older, had less education, and were more likely to have delivery costs paid by Medicaid than US-born mothers. Infants born to foreign-born women had a lower infant mortality rates than infants born to US-born women (3.8/1,000 live births vs. 4.6, p = .002). Among infants of foreign-born mothers, the odds of infant mortality increased with increasing immigrant concentration (OR 1.29; 95 % CI 1.01-1.66). There was a similar pattern of association between immigrant concentration and mortality for infants of US-born mothers (OR 1.29; 95 % CI 0.99-1.67). In Los Angeles County, the odds of infant mortality among foreign-born Mexican-origin Latina were higher in higher-density immigrant neighborhoods, with a similar trend among US-born mothers. Thus, living in immigrant enclaves likely does not help to explain the lower than expected infant mortality rate among infants born to Latina women. Instead, higher neighborhood Latino immigrant concentration may indicate a neighborhood with characteristics that negatively impact maternal and infant health for Latinos.

Low immigrant mortality in England and Wales: A data artefact?

Previous research shows low mortality for most immigrants compared to natives in host countries. This advantage is often attributed to health selection processes in migration and to protective health behaviours. Little research has examined the role of data quality, especially the registration of moves. Registration errors relating to moves between origin and host countries can mismatch deaths and risk populations, leading to denominator bias and an under-estimation of migrant mortality (data artefact). The paper investigates the mortality of immigrants in England and Wales from 1971 to 2001 using the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study (ONS LS), a 1% sample of the population of England and Wales. We apply parametric survival models to study the mortality of 450,000 individuals. We conduct sensitivity analysis to assess the impact of entry and exit uncertainty on immigrant mortality rates. The analysis shows that most international migrants have lower mortality than natives in England and Wales. Differences largely persist when we adjust models to entry and exit uncertainty and they become pronounced once we control for individual socioeconomic characteristics. This study supports low mortality among immigrants and shows that results are not a data artefact.

Immigrants' perceptions of the quality of their cancer care: an Australian comparative study, identifying potentially modifiable factors

Recent data show a falling cancer mortality in the general population without a similar shift in immigrant outcomes, leading to a greater cancer burden and mortality for immigrants. Our aims were to compare perceived patterns of care in immigrants and native-born cancer patients. This was a hospital-based sample of first-generation immigrants and Australian-born Anglo patients in the first year following diagnosis. It was restricted to Chinese, Arabic, or Greek speakers. Eligible participants, recruited via 16 oncology clinics, were over 18, with cancer (any type or stage), and having commenced treatment at least 1 month previously. Five hundred and seventy-one CALD patients (comprising 145 Arabic, 248 Chinese, and 178 Greek) and a control group of 274 Anglo-Australian patients participated. Immigrants had difficulty communicating with the doctor (73% versus 29%) and understanding the health system (38% versus 10%). Differences were found in 'difficulty knowing who to see' (P = 0.0002), 'length of time to confirm diagnosis' (P = 0.04), wanting more choice about a specialist and hospital (P < 0.0001); being offered the opportunity to see a counselor (P < 0.0001); and actually seeing one (P < 0.0001). There were no significant self-reported differences regarding how cancer was detected, time to see a health professional, or type first seen; however, immigrants reported difficulty knowing who to see. Previous studies showed differences in patterns of care according to socioeconomic status (SES) and educational level. Despite adjusting for age, sex, education, marital status, SES, time since diagnosis, and type of cancer, we did not find significant differences. Instead, we found that understanding of the health system and confidence understanding English were important factors. This study confirmed that immigrants with cancer perceive an inferior quality of cancer care. We highlight potentially modifiable factors including assistance in navigating the health system, translated information, and cultural competency training for health professionals.

Differences between immigrants at various durations of residence and host population in all-cause mortality, Canada 1991–2006

We used data from the 1991–2006 Canadian Census Mortality and Cancer Follow-up Study to compare all-cause mortality for immigrants with that of the Canadian-born population. The study addressed two related questions. First, do immigrants have a mortality advantage over the Canadian-born? Second, if immigrants have a mortality advantage, does it persist as their duration of residence increases? The analysis fitted sex-stratified hazard regression models for the overall sample and for selected countries of birth (UK, China, India, Philippines, and the Caribbean). Predictors were assessed at baseline. Mortality was lower among immigrants than the Canadian-born even after adjusting for a selected group of socio-demographic and socio-economic factors. The mortality differences persisted even after long residence in Canada, but appeared to be dependent on the age of the individual and the country of origin. Interpreted in light of known explanations of immigrant mortality advantage, the results mostly reflect selection effects.

Type 2 diabetes hospitalisation and mortality in Vietnamese immigrants in Australia

In comparison to Australia-born patients with type 2 diabetes (n=14,197), Vietnam-born patients (n=152) had significantly higher risks of mortality (any-cause and diabetes-specific) while experiencing similar rates of readmission for diabetes and co-morbidities. The findings may reflect delays in seeking care and suboptimal diabetes care in Vietnamese immigrants. Further investigation into quality of diabetes care in Vietnamese immigrant populations is needed.

Mortality among immigrants in Italy – differences between native Italians and legal immigrants and within immigrant ethnic groupings

Background Italy is facing increased immigration, but no research on immigrant mortality was yet conducted. Methods Unlinked cross-sectional study of data on immigrants and Italians resident in Italy in 2007 (Italian National Institute for Statistics, ISTAT). Aims 1. Identify differences in mortality between immigrants and Italians; 2. Identify differences in mortality across different immigrant ethnic groups based on human development index of the country of origin (HDI); 3. Identify differences in immigrant mortality across the twenty Italian regions. Statistical analysis used …

Immigrants’ Mortality Patterns in the Short- and Long-Term Point Toward Origin-Related Diversities: The Israeli Experience

Immigrant mortality studies reveal conflicting results that were attributed to diversity in immigrant definition, different classifications, and lack of appropriate comparisons. This work studied mortality patterns of the immigrations absorbed in Israel. Short-term mortality was evaluated by comparing the Standardized Mortality Rate (SMR) of the first year after immigration to the SMR of the second to fifth years. Long-term mortality was evaluated by comparing recent immigrant cohorts to cohorts of immigrants who have been residents 5 and 10 years. Stratification was made by source country classification and gender. Data were derived from the Israel National Population Registry and were analyzed anonymously. Immigrants from developed and developing countries had the highest SMR in the first year, which considerably decreased in both short and long term. Immigrants from mid-developed countries had stable SMR in the short term followed by only a modest decrease in the long term. Ethiopian immigrants exhibited exceptionally low SMR in the first year, following which it increased but remained relatively low. Mortality patterns of different immigrant groups differ even under similar definitions, conditions, and period. Only immigrants of developed and developing countries presented the expected pattern of excessive short-term mortality, which consistently decreased with time. Unique mortality patterns were discovered among two groups: Immigrants from mid-developed countries presented stable mortality attributable to isolation and delayed adaptation, and Ethiopian low mortality attributable to pre-migration natural selection.

Cancer mortality patterns among Turkish immigrants in four European countries and in Turkey

The aim of this study on cancer mortality among Turkish immigrants, for the first time, traditional comparisons in migrant health research have been extended simultaneously in two ways. First, comparisons were made to cancer mortality from the immigrants' country of origin and second, cancer mortality among Turkish immigrants across four host countries (Belgium, Denmark, France and the Netherlands) was compared. Population-based cancer mortality data from these countries were included. Age-standardized mortality rates were computed for the local-born and Turkish population of each country. Relative differences in cancer mortality were examined by fitting country-specific Poisson regression models. Globocan data on cancer mortality in Turkey from 2008 were used in order to compare mortality rates of Turkish immigrants with those from their country of origin. Turkish immigrants had lower all-cancer mortality than the local-born populations of their host countries, and mortality levels comparable to all-cancer mortality rates in Turkey. In the Netherlands and France breast cancer mortality was consistently lower in Turkish immigrants women than among local-born women. Lung cancer mortality was slightly lower in Turkish immigrants in the Netherlands and France but varied considerably between migrants in these two host countries. Stomach cancer mortality was significantly higher in Turkish immigrants when compared to local-born French and Dutch. Our findings indicate that exposures both in the country of origin and in the host country can have an effect on the cancer mortality of immigrants. Despite limitations affecting any cross-country comparison of mortality, the innovative multi-comparison approach is a promising way to gain further insights into determinants of trends in cancer mortality of immigrants.

Verbesserte Möglichkeiten zur Identifikation von Menschen mit Migrationshintergrund für die Mortalitätsforschung am Beispiel Bremens

19.6% of Germany's population has a "migrant" background. Comprehensive epidemiological research on health and health development of this large, heterogeneous and increasingly important population group in Germany is still deficient. There is a lack of results on mortality and morbidity, particularly concerning chronic diseases and disease processes. The aim of this paper is to combine and to compare already applied methods with new methodological approaches for determining the vital status and the mortality of immigrants from Turkey and the former Soviet Union. For this purpose we used data from the state of Bremen (666 709 residents, last update 2010). We examined 2 methodological aspects: (i) possibilities for identifying immigrant background in the data of residents' registration office with different methods (onomastic, toponomastic, etc.) and (ii) opportunities for record linkage of the obtained data with the Bremen mortality index. Immigrants from Turkey and the former Soviet Union were successfully identified in databases of the residents' registration office by a combination of different methods. The combination of different methodological approaches proved to be considerably better than using one method only. Through the application of a name-based algorithm we found that Turkish immigrants comprise 6.9% of the total population living in Bremen. By combining the variables "citizenship" and "country of birth" the total population proportion of immigrants from the former Soviet Union was found to be 5%. We also identified the deceased immigrant population in Bremen. The information obtained from residents' registration office could be successfully linked by death register number with the data of the Bremen mortality index. This information can be used in further detailed mortality analyses. The results of this analysis show the existing opportunities to consider the heterogeneity of the German population in mortality research, especially by means of combination of different methods to identify the immigrant background.

The demographic drivers of future ethnic group populations for UK local areas 2001–2051

Projections of the ethnic composition of the UK population presage radical change in the future at both national and local levels. The first question that users of such population projections ask is ‘what is driving the results?’ The answer can be found in the assumptions made for future mortality rates, future fertility rates, future migration rates and flows, and the age–sex structure of the starting populations. But it is difficult to disentangle the component effects and demographic momentum. We adapt a methodology proposed and used by Bongaarts and Bulatao in 1999 (Population and Development Review 25 515–29) by extending to national, subnational and ethnic group projections, applying it to projections of the ethnic group populations in English local authorities. We assess the roles played by immigration assumptions (the subject of continuous public debate), fertility assumptions, mortality assumptions and internal migration assumptions together with the role of the existing population age structure of each group in each area. Our findings are that positive immigration assumptions contribute to population growth in all local authorities, below replacement fertility lowers the population everywhere, declining mortality compensates for missing babies but substitutes elders and internal migration has very different effects depending on the local authority. Ethnic groups vary enormously in terms of the contribution of the current age structure. The demographic momentum of the White groups produces population declines while it is the most important demographic driver for some but not all of minority ethnic groups. The paper reports on the methods, assumptions and results associated with a systematic set of ‘what if’ projections. These enable us to determine the demographic drivers of future ethnic population change for England's local areas over the time horizon 2001–2051.

Mortality differences between the foreign-born and locally-born population in France (2004–2007)

In contrast to the situation in many European countries, the mortality of immigrants in France has been little studied. The main reasons for the lack of studies are based on ethical and ideological considerations. The objective of this study is to explore mortality by country of birth in Metropolitan (i.e. ‘mainland’) France. Complete mortality data were used to study the relative risks of mortality of the foreign- and locally-born populations by gender, age and cause of death for the period 2004–2007 in Metropolitan France. Analyses were conducted by countries of birth grouped into geographic areas and by the Human Development Index (HDI). The differentials in mortality between foreign-born and locally-born populations were not homogeneous. The figures varied by age (higher foreign-born mortality for the young; lower mortality for migrants aged 15–64 years), gender (female migrants more frequently had higher relative mortality than men migrants), country of birth (Eastern European-born migrants had higher mortality, while those born in Morocco, Central Asia, ’other Asian countries’ and America had lower mortality) and cause of death (migrant mortality was higher overall for deaths caused by infectious diseases and diabetes, and lower for violent death and neoplasm). Moreover, mortality relative risks for male, violent deaths and cancer were positively associated with country-of-birth HDI, while female mortality and infectious disease mortality were negatively associated with country-of-birth HDI. Some important caveats have to be considered because the study did not control for individuals socioeconomic position in France, or length of residence in the host country. A strong healthy migrant effect was suggested and its intensity varies with age and gender (which may reflect different reasons for migration). For some specific causes of death, a lifestyle effect seems to explain mortality differentials. The associations between HDI and mortality show that mortality trends are partly related to the educational, sanitary and economic conditions of the country of birth. Further studies would enrich the differential analysis of mortality by country of birth by contributing additional detailed data on socioeconomic and living conditions in the host country as well as in the country of origin.

Work and health among native and foreign-born residents in Sweden 1990–2008: a register-based study on hospitalisation due to common potentially work-related disorders, disability pension and mortality

ObjectivesTo study the health status expressed in terms of hospitalisation due to lung, ischemic heart, psychiatric, and musculoskeletal disorders, disability pension and mortality for immigrants compared to native Swedes.MethodsAll foreign-born...