CDC Urges Testing U.S. Immigrants To Control Spread Of TB

Washington (dbTechno) - Scientists from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have come out and stated that it is important for all U.S. immigrants from Africa and Southeast Asia to be tested for tuberculosis (TB) before they come into the country.

CDC researchers were led by Dr. Kevin P. Cain and looked at data from foreign-born people in the U.S. diagnosed with TB. They were studied from 2001 to 2006, and consisted of 46,970 cases in total.

The CDC carried out a study on foreign-born immigrants, and found that they make up 57% of the new tuberculosis cases in the U.S. over the past years.

Out of more than half of the TB cases in the U.S. of foreign-born people, 22% came from Southeast Asia and Africa.

They found the drug-resistant form of TB to be highest in countries such as Peru, China, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

Researchers believe that it is very important to have immigrants coming into the U.S. tested and treated before they enter the country.