Chikungunya masquerading as acute rheumatism in an Omani traveler

Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease. It typically presents as an acute febrile illness associated with a varying degree of arthralgia and musculoskeletal sequelae. Cases of chikungunya have been reported from more than 40 countries in several continents. Chikungunya is often reported in travelers returning to non-endemic/epidemic countries. With increasing international travel, it is vital that clinicians in non-endemic areas are made aware of this rapidly spreading infection. Increasing international travel [for social, leisure, and business] between Oman and several chikungunya endemic countries including Pakistan may facilitate the introduction of chikungunya to Oman. We report the first imported case of chikungunya in an Omani traveler with a link to the current outbreak in Pakistan

Epidemiology of drug-resistant tuberculosis in a tertiary care center in Oman, 2006-2015

Objectives: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence and identify the risk factors for the development of drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in a tertiary care center in Oman

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional review of culture-confirmed tuberculosis [TB] cases diagnosed at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital between August 2006 and March 2015. We compared drug-resistant TB cases with drug-sensitive cases to identify predictors of drug-resistant TB using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis

Results: Of the 260 TB cases reviewed, 73.1% were confirmed by culture. The proportion of multi-drug resistant TB was 1.8%. TB isolates resistant to any of the first-line TB drugs comprised [7.5%] of cases. Pyrazinamide monoresistance was the most frequently reported drug monoresistant pattern [3.5%]. Previous treatment for TB [odds ratio [OR] 14.81; 95% CI 3.09-70.98, p < 0.001], female gender [OR 3.85; 95% Cl 1.07-13.90, p < 0.039], and younger age [OR 6.80; 95% Cl 1.61-28.75, p < 0.009] were found to be risk factors for development of first-line antituberculosis drug-resistant TB in multivariate analysis

Conclusions: Our results show that the rate of drug-resistant TB in our population is a public health issue of great concern. Previous treatment with antituberculosis drugs, female gender, and younger age are risk factors for the development of drug-resistant TB. These findings are useful adjuvants to guide clinicians and public health professionals in the early detection and appropriate treatment of cases of drug-resistant TB