TABLE 1.
Baseline socio-demographic characteristics of TB cases among Singapore residents by ethnicity, 2002–2011
| Characteristic | Chinese (n = 11353) n (%) | Malay (n = 2919) n (%) | Indian (n = 900) n (%) | Others (n = 450) n (%) |
| Sex | ||||
| Male | 8 286 (73.0) | 1921 (65.8) | 596 (66.2) | 200 (44.4) |
| Age, years, mean ± SD | 59.9 ± 18.7 | 48.3 ± 18.5 | 48.6 ± 17.5 | 39.9 ± 17.2 |
| 0–14 | 80 (0.7) | 65 (2.2) | 11 (1.2) | 13 (2.9) |
| 15–39 | 2 089 (18.4) | 901 (30.9) | 282 (31.3) | 259 (57.6) |
| 40–64 | 5 065 (44.6) | 1370 (46.9) | 438 (48.7) | 132 (29.3) |
| ≥65 | 4 119 (36.3) | 583 (20.0) | 169 (18.8) | 46 (10.2) |
| Marital status | ||||
| Divorced | 447 (3.9) | 190 (6.5) | 52 (5.8) | 9 (2.0) |
| Other | 10 090 (88.9) | 2572 (88.1) | 789 (87.7) | 424 (94.2) |
| Unknown | 816 (7.2) | 157 (5.4) | 59 (6.6) | 17 (3.8) |
| Housing type* | ||||
| Government flat (1–2 room) | 832 (7.3) | 247 (8.5) | 68 (7.6) | 22 (4.9) |
| Government flat (3–5 room) | 7 818 (68.9) | 2146 (73.5) | 617 (68.6) | 341 (75.8) |
| Private housing | 711 (6.2) | 23 (0.7) | 41 (4.6) | 40 (8.9) |
| Unknown | 2 703 (23.8) | 526 (18.0) | 215 (23.9) | 87 (19.3) |
| Local-born | ||||
| Yes | 9 767 (86.0) | 2697 (92.4) | 583 (64.8) | 93 (20.7) |
| No | 1 523 (13.0) | 219 (7.5) | 309 (34.3) | 356 (79.1) |
| Unknown | 63 (1.0) | 3 (0.1) | 8 (0.9) | 1 (0.2) |
| Residential status | ||||
| Citizen | 10 946 (96.4) | 2861 (98.0) | 726 (80.7) | 163 (36.2) |
| Permanent resident | 407 (3.6) | 58 (2.0) | 174 (19.3) | 287 (63.8) |
| Incarceration in a correctional facility at point of TB notification† | 195 (1.7) | 192 (6.6) | 35 (3.9) | 7 (1.6) |
| Clustered by home address (n = 14 109)‡ | 794 (7.8) | 321 (11.9) | 56 (6.9) | 17 (4.1) |
*
1- to 2-room government flats represent the cheapest forms of housing, while 3- to 5-room government flats are mid-range; private housing refers to private apartments and any forms of landed property, the most expensive forms of housing.
†
Includes 61 inmates from drug rehabilitation centres and 326 prison inmates.
‡
Does not include patients residing in congregate settings such as prisons, nursing homes, sheltered homes, halfway houses, etc.
TB = tuberculosis; SD = standard deviation.