An 8-year era of interrupted indigenous measles transmission in Bulgaria came to an end in April 2009 when a large epidemic occurred that would eventually claim 24 253 cases and 24 deaths; infants, children and young adults of the Roma community were disproportionally affected. Compared with Western Europe, case-fatality rate and proportion of medical complications were uncharacteristically high.

Roma people are commonly described as having an unhealthy lifestyle—for example, an unhealthy diet, intensive smoking, frequent alcohol consumption and a lack of physical activity. However, data about such health-endangering behaviours among Roma adolescents are scarce and of poor quality. The aim of our study is to assess the occurrence of health-endangering behaviours among Slovak Roma adolescents in comparison to non-Roma adolescents, and to assess the impact of parental education and social desirability on the differences found.

During implementation of a community development project involving a severely disadvantaged Roma community, the community was threatened with eviction. Two scenarios, eviction with placement on the waiting list for social housing versus a replacement housing development, were identified and specified. A health impact assessment (HIA) was carried out to inform subsequent negotiations.

An innovative partnership with members of the Romany Gypsy community living in South Bukinghamshire aims to improve physical and mental health and wellbeing. If it is successful it will be extended to other communities. 

The association National Roma Centrum within the project activities “Health Inequalities regarding Romani Women” in the period between November 2010 and November 2011 intensively worked on a research on the health care in the reproductive period of women in the Roma community. 

Background: In 2009, 8.4% of live births in Hungary were low birth weight (LBW) and 8.7% were preterm (PTB). Roma are disproportionately represented in Northern Hungary where LBW and PTB are highest in the country (10.3% equally). This study evaluates the risk factors for LBW and/or PTB among the Roma and non-Roma populations in two Northern Hungarian counties. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 5469 non-Roma and 2287 Roma mothers who gave birth in 2009. Women were visited by the Maternal and Child Health Service nurses and completed in-person structured surveys on demographic, socio-economic, cultural and lifestyle factors. These data were combined with biometric data from hospital records. Bivariate statistics and a logistic regression analyses were used to determine risk factors for LBW and PTB. Results: Roma had a higher incidence of PTB and LBW babies compared with non-Roma women (PTB 9.9% vs. 7.1%, LBW 12.2% vs. 6.5% P = 0.001). However, ethnicity was not related to PTB and LBW in multivariable analyses, when controlling for socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics. Factors associated with LBW and PTB include being underweight, advanced maternal age, and smoking. Conclusion: Strategies that ensure healthy lifestyles must be well integrated in family-based interventions and in the schools, with special consideration for Roma women who have a higher prevalence of deleterious lifestyles and poor birth outcomes. Ensuring a healthy body weight and no smoking has important implications for the mother and foetus.

The Roma community in Europe is a subgroup of the Romani people, whose origins are in northern India and who have been known in English-speaking countries as “gypsies.” Measles outbreaks, including severe cases, were reported in the European Roma community during 2008-2010 (1,2).

To assess the smoking status and support for tobacco control policies among the Roma minority compared with the non-Roma population in Hungary