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Sex Transm Infect 2009;85:427-431 doi:10.1136/sti.2008.034066
  • Epidemiology

AIDS mortality in African migrants living in Portugal: evidence of large social inequalities

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  1. L M Williamson1,
  2. M Rosato2,
  3. A Teyhan1,
  4. P Santana3,
  5. S Harding1
  1. 1
    Medical Research Council Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, Glasgow, UK
  2. 2
    Centre for Public Health, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK
  3. 3
    Centro de Estudos de Geografia e Ordenamento do Território, Universidade de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
  1. Correspondence to Lisa M Williamson, MRC Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, 4 Lilybank Gardens, Glasgow G12 8RZ, UK; Lisa{at}sphsu.mrc.ac.uk
  • Accepted 28 May 2009
  • Published Online First 11 June 2009

Abstract

Objective: To examine infectious disease and AIDS mortality among African migrants in Portugal, gender and socio-economic differences in AIDS mortality risk, and differences between African migrants to Portugal and to England and Wales.

Methods: Data from death registrations, 1998–2002, and the 2001 Census were used to derive standardised death rates by country of birth, occupational class (men only), and marital status.

Results: Compared with people born in Portugal, African migrants had higher mortality for infectious diseases including AIDS. There was considerable heterogeneity among Africans, with those from Cape Verde having the highest mortality. Death rates were more than five times higher among those who were unmarried than those who were. A larger proportion of Africans were unmarried accounting for some excess mortality. Death rates were also higher among men from manual occupational classes than among men from non-manual. A comparison with England and Wales shows that death rates for infectious disease and AIDS in Portugal are much higher and Africans in Portugal also fare worse than Africans in England and Wales.

Conclusion: AIDS mortality rates were higher among Africans than those born in Portugal and were associated with socio-environmental factors. Further research is required to interpret the excess mortality among Africans and there is a need to ensure the inclusion of relevant data items on ethnicity in national monitoring and surveillance systems.

Footnotes

  • Funding The UK Medical Research Council funds LW, AT and SH as part of the Sexual and Reproductive Health Programme (WBS U.1300.00.005) and the Ethnicity and Health Programme (WBS U.1300.00.003) at the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit. MR is funded by the Health Research Board (Ireland) and PS is funded by the University of Coimbra.

  • Competing interests None.

  • Contributors SH and PS devised the paper, MR and AT conducted the statistical analyses, and LW and SH wrote the first draft. All authors contributed to subsequent drafts and approved the final version of the manuscript.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

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