Occurrence of acute respiratory infection, diarrhea and jaundice among Afghan pilgrims, 2010

Khwaja Mir Islam Saeed; Jawad Mofleh; M. Hafiz Rasooly; M. Iabal Aman

doi:10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.003

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Volume 2, Issue 4, December 2012, Pages 215 - 220

Occurrence of acute respiratory infection, diarrhea and jaundice among Afghan pilgrims, 2010

Authors

Khwaja Mir Islam Saeed^a^{, *}^,km_islam2001@yahoo.com, Jawad Mofleh^b^{, 1}^,jjmofleh@yahoo.com, M. Hafiz Rasooly^a^{, 2}^,dochafez@yahoo.com, M. Iabal Aman^a^{, 3}^,aman.iqbal786@gmail.com

^aAfghanistan National Public Health Institute, Ministry of Public Health, Kabul, Afghanistan

^bEastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET), Amman, Jordan

¹

Tel.: 0093799607107.

²

Tel.: 0093798036038.

³

Tel.: 0093700615156.

^*Corresponding author. Tel.: 0093700290955.

Corresponding Author

Khwaja Mir Islam Saeedkm_islam2001@yahoo.com

Received 22 December 2011, Revised 23 November 2012, Accepted 23 November 2012, Available Online 27 December 2012.

DOI: 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.003 How to use a DOI?
Keywords: Mass Gathering; ARI; Diarrhea; Hajj; Afghanistan
Abstract: Background: Annually 30,000 Afghans attend the Hajj in Saudi Arabia that is one of the largest mass gathering events in the world. We aimed to determine the prevalence of three syndromes of interest diarrhea, acute respiratory infections (ARI) and jaundice-among Hajjis gathering at the four transit sites in Afghanistan before, during, and after their voyage.

Methods: A total of 1659 Hajjis at four transit sites were selected and included a cross-sectional study. Information was collected prior Hajjis departure and upon their return from Saudi Arabia regarding demographics and experience of diarrhea, ARI and jaundice. Standardized case definitions were used for the three health outcomes of interest.

Results: The occurrence of diarrhea and jaundice remained constant over time. However, ARI increased from 1.4% at pre-transit to 4% at transit area and 37% during the Hajj. ARI rates among residents from the Central and Northern regions of Afghanistan were significantly higher at the post-Hajj stage, at 50% and 69%, respectively. There was no difference in ARI by sex among Hajjis.

Conclusions: There is a need to review the quality and effectiveness of the flu vaccine. Authorities should come up with the sound strategies to overcome ARI problems during Hajj.
Open Access: This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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Journal: Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue: 2 - 4
Pages: 215 - 220
Publication Date: 2012/12/27
ISSN (Online): 2210-6014
ISSN (Print): 2210-6006
DOI: 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.003 How to use a DOI?
Open Access: This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Cite this article

ris enw bib

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Khwaja Mir Islam Saeed
AU  - Jawad Mofleh
AU  - M. Hafiz Rasooly
AU  - M. Iabal Aman
PY  - 2012
DA  - 2012/12/27
TI  - Occurrence of acute respiratory infection, diarrhea and jaundice among Afghan pilgrims, 2010
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 215
EP  - 220
VL  - 2
IS  - 4
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.003
DO  - 10.1016/j.jegh.2012.11.003
ID  - Saeed2012
ER  -

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