ABSTRACT
Data about the public's awareness and acceptability of the human papilloma virus [HPV] vaccine are lacking in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. This study aimed to explore parental acceptability of HPV vaccination for their daughters in Morocco. A cross-sectional survey was carried out among mothers and fathers of girls aged 12-15 years at 12 middle schools from 6 regions of Morocco. Despite weak knowledge of genital warts and HPV infection, acceptability of the HPV vaccine was 76.8% [95% CI: 73.3-79.9%] among mothers and 68.9% [95% CI: 65.2-72.5%] among fathers. Only 8.8% of mothers and 7.0% of fathers were against administration of the HPV vaccine to their daughters. Predictors of parents' acceptance of the HPV vaccine were living in precarious housing/slums and low household income [for mothers] and living in urban areas [for fathers]. These results will be useful for preparing the introduction of the HPV vaccine in health ministry programme
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Cross-Sectional Studies , Nuclear Family , Papillomavirus InfectionsABSTRACT
HIV sentinel surveillance was performed in five provinces of Morocco in 1993, expanded to 10 provinces in 1996. The activity was done by unlinked anonymous testing procedures. We analysed the data from 1993 to 1999. The groups studied were sexually transmitted infections, clinic attendees, pregnant women and patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. The results show that overall HIV prevalence rate over the whole period in 10 cities was 0.10% [45/44,233]. Casablanca had a significantly high rate with 0.39% [10/2567]. The patients with pulmonary tuberculosis displayed the highest prevalence with 0.36% [9/2530]. These data confirm the assumption that the HIV epidemic is low in Morocco. However, the increase of HIV prevalence lately calls for reinforcing preventive measures to limit its spread
Subject(s)
Adult , Child , Female , Humans , Male , AIDS Serodiagnosis , Anonymous Testing , Circumcision, Male/adverse effects , Comorbidity , Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay , HIV Seroprevalence/trends , Mass Screening/methods , Pregnancy , Sentinel Surveillance , Tuberculosis, Pulmonary/complications , Urban Health/statistics & numerical dataABSTRACT
The first case of AIDS in Morocco was declared in 1986 and since then the number of AIDS cases has steadily increased. According to the Ministry of Health, the cumulative number of AIDS cases in December 2002 was 1085. HIV in Morocco is acquired mainly through heterosexual intercourse. Individuals aged between 30 and 39 years and in the regions of Marrakech and Agadir have been the most affected. Monitoring of the trend of the epidemic by sentinel surveillance surveys indicates that Morocco is still a low prevalence zone, since prevalence among pregnant women is less than 1%. The estimated number of HIV-infected people in Morocco is around 15 000. It is not clear why the epidemic here has not evolved as it has in the sub-Saharan countries where it is spreading at an alarming rate. Late introduction of HIV-1 subtype B in Morocco, which is relatively less transmissible, circumcision and reduced risk behaviours of Muslims may explain this. Nonetheless, because prevalence has increased in recent years, unless preventive measures are strengthened, the HIV epidemic will worsen in Morocco
Subject(s)
Adult , Female , Humans , Male , Circumcision, Male/statistics & numerical data , Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical/prevention & control , HIV Seroprevalence , HIV-1 , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Health Surveys , Infant, Newborn , Islam/psychology , Pregnancy Complications, Infectious/epidemiology , Residence Characteristics/statistics & numerical data , Sexual Behavior/statistics & numerical data , Urban Health/statistics & numerical dataABSTRACT
Antimicrobial resistance is a worldwide problem. The antibiotic resistance of Moroccan strains of Salmonella enteritidis was investigated from 1996 to 1997. A total of 51 strains were collected within this period, 31 derived from human sources and 20 from food. Of the 31 human strains, 10 were resistant to antibiotics; 4 were resistant to two or more antibiotics. Of the 20 food strains, 11 were resistant to antibiotics; 6 were resistant to two or more antibiotics. The results are similar to those obtained from strains isolated from other Mediterranean countries
Subject(s)
Humans , Drug Resistance, Microbial , Food , Food Microbiology , Drug Resistance, MultipleABSTRACT
The investigation of a measles epidemic that occurred in May 1995 in the locality of Kouf [Province of Tetouan] detected 64 cases of measles among 281 children below 15 years of age. The attack rate was 22.8%. The most affected age group was 1-3 years. Age, sex, sublocality, school attendance and number of brothers and sisters did not seem to be risk factors for measles in this epidemic. The vaccine coverage among children aged 9 to 59 months was 83.8% with or without vaccination document and 92.7% with document. The vaccine efficacy in children 9 months to 3 years of age was 40%. Further investigations would be needed in order to clarify the reasons for this low percentage