Innovative quality-assurance strategies for tuberculosis surveillance in the United States.

Introduction. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s National Tuberculosis Surveillance System (NTSS) is the national repository of tuberculosis (TB) data in the United States. Jurisdictions report to NTSS through the Report of Verified Case of Tuberculosis (RVCT) form that transitioned to a web-based system in 2009.

Tuberculosis among persons born in the Philippines and living in the United States, 2000-2007.

Objectives: We examined demographic, clinical, and treatment outcome characteristics of Filipinos with tuberculosis (TB) in the United States.

Methods: We calculated TB case rates from US Census Bureau population estimates and National Tuberculosis Surveillance System data for US-born non-Hispanic Whites and for US residents born in the Philippines, India, China, Cambodia, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Korea--countries that are major contributors to the TB burden in the United States. We compared Filipinos with the other groups through univariate and multivariate analyses.