Background: Obesity is continually growing not only in medium- and high-income countries but also in low-income countries, from where increasing numbers of migrants arrive in Western countries. We aimed to investigate the frequency and characteristics of obesity in a sample of undocumented migrants, a population for which official health data are not available.
Methods: We collected demographic and socio-economic data and information on medical diagnoses and pharmacologic treatments for 341 undocumented migrants consecutively attending the outpatient clinic of a big non-governmental organisation in Milan, Italy, from March to July 2023.
Undocumented migrants represent a large part of the population in Countries of the European Union (EU) such as Italy. Their health burden is not fully understood and likely to be related mainly to chronic conditions. Information on their health needs and conditions may help to target public health interventions but is not found in national public health databases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe increasing presence of documented and undocumented migrants increases the commitment of the Italian National Health Service to their health needs, following its founding principle of equity. In particular, chronic diseases, such as diabetes, represent a crucial area where patients' health is affected by their adherence to care pathways, for which the recent literature has reported alarming low levels. In the case of migrants, obstacles to adherence, such as language or organizational barriers, could be overcome thanks also to charitable organizations providing healthcare services.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiabetes prevalence is growing worldwide, especially in some populations. Though migrations seem to contribute to the presence in host countries of a significant number of patients with diabetes and its comorbidities, very little is known about the health conditions of undocumented migrants. We retrospectively studied 838 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), 425 Italians followed by the diabetes clinic of a university hospital, and 413 undocumented migrants receiving assistance from a non-governmental organization.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Environ Res Public Health
December 2022
Based on the principle of health equity, the Italian National Health Service is known worldwide for being a universalistic system that guarantees healthcare services for all its population, among which there are undocumented migrants. A commitment for their health needs is further motivated by their lower utilisation rates of healthcare services, which becomes even more crucial when considering chronic conditions such as diabetes that require adherence and continuity of care. However, the need for more official data has resulted in little research documenting these healthcare usage patterns.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStudy Objectives: The marginalisation of undocumented migrants raises concerns about equitable access to COVID-19 vaccination. This study aims to describe migrants' hesitancy about the COVID-19 vaccination during the early phase of the vaccination campaign.
Setting: This multicentric cross-sectional survey was conducted in health facilities providing care to undocumented migrants in the USA, Switzerland, Italy and France in February-May 2021.
Background: All over the world, the COVID-19 pandemic, not unlikely other epidemics, has hit harder people in low socioeconomic conditions.In Western countries, undocumented migrants are a growing component of this disadvantaged segment of the population.Their health conditions are frequently burdened by a number of chronic conditions, and they experience many difficulties in accessing public health services.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPopulation groups such as undocumented migrants have been almost completely forgotten during the COVID-19 pandemic, though they have been living in all European countries for decades and new arrivals have continued throughout the pandemic. The aim of this study was to investigate their health conditions during the current pandemic. We analysed the records of 272 patients with respiratory issues attending the outpatient clinic of a large charity in Milan, Italy: amongst them, 18 had COVID-19 confirmed by rhino-pharyngeal swab and 1 of them deceased.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFType 2 diabetes is increasingly recognized as a spectrum of metabolic disorders sharing chronic hyperglycaemia. In Europe, the continually growing number of migrants from developing countries could affect diabetes phenotypes. We evaluated a population of 426 Italians and 412 undocumented migrants.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe assessed the outcome of dysphagia rehabilitation in all the 139 patients with post-stroke dysphagia admitted to our Neurorehabilitation Unit during 2 years (2017 and 2018), divided into two groups: old (aged 65-84 years) and oldest-old (aged 85 or above). We studied which factors predicted dysphagia improvement in the two groups. The potential association of improvement with type of discharge was also evaluated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Undocumented migrants experience many health problems; a comparison with a suitable control group of natives living in the same socio-economic conditions is still lacking.
Methods: Demographic data and data on risk factors, chronic conditions and dietary habits were obtained for 6933 adults (2950 Italians and 3983 undocumented migrants) receiving medical assistance from 40 non-governmental organizations all over the country.
Results: Attributed to the fact that these were unselected groups, differences were found in their demographic features, the main ones being their marital status (singles: 50.
Background: Dysphagia prevalence increases with age and a significant contribution is given by stroke survivors; its treatment is mainly based on rehabilitation, but outcome cannot be easily predicted.
Objective: The aim of this study is to detect possible predictors of the outcome of dysphagia in patients beginning rehabilitation after a major Central Nervous System injury.
Methods: Dysphagia severity was measured in 95 consecutive patients (71 with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke) upon admission to our neurorehabilitation unit and at discharge, during the year 2017.
Aims: Migrants from countries in which health and social conditions are unsatisfactory, and their offspring, are becoming a growing component of the western population. Available health data show that their morbidity is at least comparable to that of the host country population, with a significant contribution of chronic diseases as diabetes. The possibility that diabetes shows different features in undocumented migrants is the hypothesis that we tried to investigate in this study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt Clin Psychopharmacol
September 2017
To evaluate psychotropic drug use in undocumented migrants and natives in the same conditions of poverty. We studied drug dispensation by a nongovernmental organization during the year 2014. Drugs were identified according to the Anatomical Chemical Therapeutic classification and their quantity was measured in defined daily doses (DDD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe analysed drug dispensation by charitable organisations in a year time. Drugs were grouped according to the Anatomic Therapeutic Chemical classification and the amount dispensed was calculated with the system of the Daily Defined Dose (DDD) and expressed as DDD/1000 subjects/day. A number of 87,550 subjects were studied (13,308 Italians; 74,242 Immigrants).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAim Of The Study: To evaluate the impact of residential intermediate care (IC) on the cognitive status of post-acute older patients and its correlation with the improvement in physical independence.
Methods: This prospective observational study involved 299 subjects (116 males and 183 females; mean age 80.1 ± 8.