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Background: There is a lack of studies of Parkinson's disease (PD) in immigrants. Objective: To study the association between country of birth and incident PD in immigrants in Sweden versus Swedish-born individuals. Methods: Study population included all adults aged 50 years and older in Sweden (n = 2775736). PD was defined as having at least one registered diagnosis of PD in the National Patient Register. The incidence of PD in different first-generation immigrant groups versus Swedish-born individuals was assessed by Cox regression, expressed as hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). The models were stratified by sex and adjusted for age, geographical residence in Sweden, educational level, marital status, neighbourhood socioeconomic status and co-morbidity. Results: Totally 35833 individuals had an incident diagnosis of PD (20401 men and 15432 women). Incidence rates per 100,000 person-years were for all Swedish-born 95.9 and for all foreign-born 60.1; for all men 112.3 and for all women 73.4, with a male to female ratio of 1.53, with the highest incidence rates for the group 80–84 years of age. After adjusting for potential confounders, the overall relative risk of PD was lower in immigrant men (HR 0.78; 95% CI 0.74–0.82) and women (HR 0.92; 95% CI 0.87–0.98). Among immigrant subgroups, a higher risk of PD was found among women from Finland (HR 1.13; 95% CI 1.05–1.23). Conclusion: In general, the risk of PD was lower in first-generation immigrant men and women compared to Swedish-born. The only group with a higher risk of PD was women from Finland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of hypertension, defined as systolic or diastolic blood pressure or both of at least 140/90 mmHg measured on one occasion or being treated for hypertension or both, in 60-year-old men and women in groups of immigrants compared to Swedish-born., Design and Method: A population-based, cross-sectional study in Stockholm County including 4228 participants (77% participation rate), of whom 19% were immigrants. Outcome measures were prevalence of hypertension in immigrants compared to Swedish-born men and women with adjustments for various metabolic, lifestyle and socio-economic characteristics., Results: The prevalence of hypertension among Swedish-born individuals (n = 3327) was 61% in men and 44% in women, among Finnish-born individuals (n = 327) it was 77% in men and 62% in women and among non-European immigrants (n = 123) it was 51% in men and 36% in women. The mean blood pressure in Finnish-born men was 149/90 (hypertensive). After adjustments for metabolic, lifestyle and socio-economic characteristics, the odds ratio for hypertension in immigrants from Finland was 2.02 (1.56-2.61) and the odds ratio in immigrants from non-European countries was 0.52 (0.34-0.80) using Swedish-born participants as reference., Conclusion: About half of all 60-year-olds in Sweden had high blood pressure. The high prevalence of hypertension found in Finnish-born immigrants remained after adjustments for many factors and needs a genetic or environmental explanation. The high prevalence of hypertension in Sweden, especially in Finnish-born immigrants, calls for preventive actions.