More Canadian kids of immigrant mothers are being vaccinated, finds a new study, though the overall rate of vaccinations could be improved among both immigrant and non-immigrant groups.

The study found that 69 per cent of children from immigrant mothers were completely immunized, with those from south and northeast Asia the most likely to have full immunizations. Only 65.9 per cent of kids from non-immigrant mothers were fully immunized.

"In a system such as Canada's with universal access to all primary care services and high visit rates by children, we have shown that immunization coverage is less than ideal," write the authors.

Those kids who have immigrant mothers with lower education, a low income or who were refugees were less likely to have received vaccinations.

The study, published in the May issue of Ambulatory Pediatrics, shows that immunization coverage for immigrant and non-immigrant children stands at 67 per cent, based on medical data of 98,123 children born between July 1, 1997, and June 30, 1998. The data came from the mothers' files collected in a federal landed immigrant database.

Where the children arrived from, their immigration periods and immigration status were all noted.

Full vaccinations were defined as three doses and one booster of DPTP/Hib (which protects children against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio and Haemophilus influenzae type b) given at two, four and 18 months, and one combined dose of MMR (protects against measles, mumps and rubella) given after age 12 months.

The findings were mixed, according to the researchers.

"This is a good news, bad news study," said lead author and senior ICES scientist, Astrid Guttman.

"On one hand, immigrant mothers are accessing immunizations for their children better than non-immigrant mothers. This is particularly important since immigrant families may have increased exposure to vaccine-preventable diseases from travel to, or visitors from, endemic regions of the world."

"On the other side, overall rates of up-to-date coverage are too low."