Our study shows that, in spite of a gradual decrease, the incidence rates of pulmonary tuberculosis in immigrants remain high even a decade after immigration. The persistent high incidence rates are consistent with results of previous studies (2–5). Our study combines data on all immigrant patients in whom tuberculosis was detected and all legal immigrants present in a 5-year period in a low incidence country, enabling detailed analysis with a long follow-up period. We did not find a steep decline in incidence rates after immigration. One might anticipate such a decline, since the proportion of recently infected or reinfected persons will be higher sooner after immigration than later due to relatively low levels.
