Mental Disorders in People with Migration Background Compared with German General Population

Objective Comparison of 4-week, 12-month and lifetime prevalence rates of mental disorders between the German general population and persons without German nationality who were not born in Germany (migrants). Methods A migration-sensitive reanalysis of the supplement survey, mental disorders" of the German Health Survey 1998/1999 was conducted. 143 migrants were compared with 3740 Germans. Results Results demonstrate significantly higher 4-week, 12-month and lifetime prevalence rates of mental disorders for migrants in comparison to Germans. These differences are highest regarding affective disorders (4-week prevalence: 11.7 vs. 5.8%; 12-month prevalence: 17.9 vs. 11.3%; lifetime prevalence: 24.9 vs. 18.2%) and somatoform disorders (4-week prevalence: 15.5 vs. 6.9%; 12-month prevalence: 19.9 vs. 10.3%; lifetime prevalence: 24.1 vs. 15.4%). Conclusions The results highlight the importance of a differentiating examination of prevalence rates for migrants. They also serve as a basis for further investigation of the relation between migration and mental health as well as for developing a cultural sensitive health care.