Diabetes Among United States-Bound Adult Refugees, 2009–2014

We reported diabetes prevalence among all US-bound adult refugees and assessed factors associated with disease. We analyzed overseas medical evaluations of US-bound refugees from 2009 through 2014 by using CDC’s Electronic Disease Notification System. We identified refugees with diabetes by searching for diabetes-related keywords and medications in examination forms with text-parsing techniques. Age-adjusted prevalence rates were reported and factors associated with diabetes were assessed by using logistic regression. Of 248,850 refugees aged ≥18 years examined over 5 years, 5767 (2.3 %) had diabetes. Iraqis had the highest crude (5.1 %) and age-adjusted (8.9 %) prevalence of disease. Higher age group and body mass index were associated with diabetes in all regions. Diabetes prevalence varied by refugee nationality. Although the absolute rates were lower than rates in the United States, the prevalence is still concerning given the younger age of the population and their need for health services upon resettlement.