[Epidemiological research on migrant health in Germany. An overview]

Abstract

In recent years, Germany has become an important immigration country. Health services in Germany thus have to face the needs of a growing migrant population. The health of migrants is affected by the process of migration in various--positive as well as negative--ways. Epidemiological research can help to reveal health inequalities between migrants and the majority population as well as to identify causes of disease. Standard epidemiological study designs may have to be adapted for migrant health research so they can be employed in migrant studies. While a large number of descriptive studies on migrant health have been conducted in Germany based on routinely available data sources, analytical migrant studies are still scarce. This paper presents an overview of methods and findings of epidemiological studies related to migrants in Germany. It also describes needs and challenges for future research.