ABSTRACT
This study looks into the attitudes of Muslims toward immunization in Nigeria. It also analyzes the reasons for the reluctance to accept immunization by these people of the Islamic faith especially in the northern part of Nigeria. Among the major grievances of Muslims against mmunization is that the polio vaccine, according to source, was laced with substances that could render girls infertile, as part of the USA led a plot to depopulate Africa. Furthermore, it was alleged that the oral polio vaccine [OPV] was extracted from the monkey tissue, rendering it forbidden [haram] to Muslims. The method adopted for this research is purely derived from books, journals, documents, monographs, Internets, archives, newspapers, reports as well as the Glorious Qur'an and Ahadith. The study reveals that the OPV is truly extracted from the tissue of monkeys but had been processed and transformed involving various levels of chemical and biological processes. Therefore, this transformation had made it lawful [halal]. Likewise, the OPV used in Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, and Indonesia is of the same high quality worldwide and from similar sources. No evidence exists supporting the claim that the vaccine is used to depopulate the Muslim world. The population of Muslim countries that had adopted the OPV to eradicate polio has continued to grow at the same rate as it used to before polio campaigns. The paper, therefore, recommended that Muslims should allow their children to take immunization
ABSTRACT
Primary toxoplasmosis is usually subclinical, but in severely immunocompromised patients it may be life-threatening. For this reason, it could be important to monitor situations related to non-noticeable diseases among foreign arrivals in a country. In this study, we aimed to survey toxoplasmosis among migrants from Indian subcontinent to Malaysia. In a prospective, observational study, a serological evaluation on toxoplasmosis among 91 migrants from Indian Subcontinent in Malaysia was conducted in a plantation and a detention camp. We used study subject information sheet for demographic information and venous blood samples for serological study to determine Toxoplasma gondii IgG and IgM antibodies. The control group was composed of 198 local Malaysians working in the same plantation and detention camp. The age of study participants ranged from 19-45 years [geometric mean 29.9]. Except for the Nepalese, none of these migrants from the Indian Subcontinent were positive for IgM. IgG positive rates among the Nepalese, Indians and Pakistani were 46.2%, 6.6% and 5.9% respectively. All workers from Sri Lanka had 0.0% prevalence rate for both IgG and IgM. The prevalence rates of 44.9% was significantly [p <0.001] higher among local Malaysian workers when compared to migrant workers [18.8%]. No significant difference in the prevalence rates was noted among the migrants or local workers when they were grouped according to agricultural and non-agricultural occupations. Our data demonstrate that, with the exception of Nepalese population, there is a low frequency of toxoplasmosis infection among migrants from Indian subcontinent to Malaysia. A routine screening for toxoplasmosis may be indicated for sub-groups of migrants in this country