ABSTRACT
Background: the congregation of so many people during Umrah and Hajj seasons from different parts of the world in unavoidably overcrowded conditions within a confined area for a defined period of time presents many public health challenges and health risks are greatly increased with potential for both local and international consequences. The human nasopharynx and nares are densely colonized by a broad variety of microorganisms including commet2sal bacteria as well as potentially pathogenic bacteria [PPB] mainly: Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Neisseria meningitides, Moraxella catarrhal is and hemophilic influenza
Aims of the study: determination of the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in Umrah visitors and Pilgrims before and after performing Umrah and Hajj, determination the antibiotic resistance patterns of Staphylococcus aureus isolates before and after Umrah and Hajj seasons and determination of the prevalence of [MRSA] and [VRSA] among Umrah visitors Pilgrims
Methodology: nasal swabs were collected from 979 Umrah visitors and 613 Pilgrims, from different nationalities before and after performing Umrah and Hajj respectively. All swabs were cultured on Mannitol salt agar to isolate Staphylococcus aureus and the isolates were identified according to the standard microbiological methods under complete aseptic conditions. VITEK 2 systems were used for the automated identification of isolated gram positive bacteria [GP] and Antimicrobial susceptibility Tests '% AST'
Results: performing Umrah increases the carriage rate of Staphylococcus aureus, since the carriage rate among the Umrah visitors was more after performing Umrah than before performing Umrah. The carriage rate of Staphylococcus aureus among the Umrah visitors was [[5.8%] before performing Umrah and [24%] after performing Umrah. This is unlike performing Hajj as while carriage rate was [25%] in pilgrims before performing Hajj it was [20.9%] in pilgrims after performing Hajj
ABSTRACT
To estimate the prevalence of IgG antibodies against B19 virus [B19V] in Makkah and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. B19V-specific IgG antibodies were detected by a commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in sera of 400 paediatric patients [185 males and 215 females] aged 1-17 years. Results: Of the 400 patients, 80 [20%] had sera positive for B19V-specific IgG. The difference in the prevalence of the antibodies between genders was not statistically significant [p = 0.9]. The prevalence of anti-B19V antibodies increased significantly in the age group of 12-17 years as compared to younger patients [37.5 vs. 18% in those aged 1-11 years; p = 0.006 This study indicated a high prevalence of IgG antibodies against B19V in paediatric patients with an increase in age