Syndromic surveillance of respiratory-tract infections and hand hygiene practice among pilgrims attended Hajj in 2021: a cohort study.

BACKGROUND: The risk of transmission of viral respiratory tract infections (RTIs) is high in mass gatherings including Hajj. This cohort study estimated the incidence of symptomatic RTIs and hand hygiene compliance with its impact among Hajj pilgrims during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: During the week of Hajj rituals in 2021, domestic pilgrims were recruited by phone and asked to complete a baseline questionnaire. Pilgrims were followed up after seven days using a questionnaire about the development of symptoms, and practices of hand hygiene. Syndromic definitions were used to clinically diagnose 'possible' influenza-like illnesses (ILI) and COVID-19 infection. RESULTS: A total of 510 pilgrims aged between 18 and 69 (median of 50) years completed the questionnaire, 280 (54.9%) of whom were female, and all of them (except for one) were vaccinated against COVID-19 with at least one dose. The mean (± SD) of pilgrims' hand hygiene knowledge score (on a scale of 0 to 6) was 4.15 (± 1.22), and a higher level of knowledge was correlated with a higher frequency of handwashing using soap and water. Among those 445 pilgrims who completed the follow-up form, 21 (4.7%) developed one or more respiratory symptoms, of which sore throat and cough were the commonest (respectively 76.2% and 42.8%); 'possible ILI' and 'possible COVID-19' were present in 1.1% and 0.9% of pilgrims. Obesity was found to be a significant factor associated with the risk of developing RTIs (odds ratio = 4.45, 95% confidence interval 1.15-17.13). CONCLUSIONS: Hajj pilgrims are still at risk of respiratory infections. Further larger and controlled investigations are needed to assess the efficacy of hand hygiene during Hajj.

Post-COVID-19 Vaccine Parosmia: A Case Report.

We present the case of a healthy 38-year-old male who developed parosmia following a second dose of AstraZeneca with a negative nasal swab of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. The patient noted parosmia that started suddenly after one week of receiving the second dose of AstraZeneca with no association with other symptoms. The patient has still not recovered from his parosmia until the publication of this article. The olfactory disorder was confirmed using a validated questionnaire for parosmia assessment and examination by rhinoscopy. Parosmia is a rare side effect of COVID-19, and its pathophysiological mechanism is still unknown. More research in the future is needed to know the association of parosmia with COVID-19 vaccine.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRADITIONAL DRESS AND BACTERIAL CONTAMINATION IN THE HOSPITAL SETTING-A CROSSECTIONAL STUDY

BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION : Healthcare worker uniforms are a potential reservoir for microorganisms, and thus contaminated dress may transmit pathogenic organisms in hospital settings. This study aims at isolating the bacteria from traditional dresses used in a tertiary care hospital, Saudi Arabia, and compares them with whitecoat. Also, this study explores the relationship between bacterial contamination and type of department, type of provider specialty, and dress textile material. METHODS : A Descriptive Analytic cross-sectional study was conducted. Multiple culture swabs were obtained from these traditional dresses and whitecoats of the healthcare workers and were analyzed for the rate of bacterial contamination. This study also compares the bacterial contamination rates between medical workers and non-medical personnel like the administrative staff. A Sample size of 742 swabs from 139 participants,from multiple sites was obtained.Data analysis was presented as mean± SD, or as median and range according to the type of distribution of each variable. The Chi-square test was used to test for the association and/or difference between two categorical variables and p-value for statistical significance. RESULTS : It was seen that bacterial contamination of 29.7% was seen in traditional dress compared to 22.5% of those wearing Whitecoat. Concerning the type of traditional dress, the highest rate of bacterial contamination was observed with Thop (40%), followed by Niqab (36.1%). Regarding the source textile material, the mixed type had the highest rate of bacterial contamination (35.7%). CONCLUSION : The traditional dress showed to be higher in the rate of bacterial contamination in comparison to whitecoats. Also, we found that the type of department and type provider specialty concerning bacterial contamination has a no different effect when compared to others. in our results, the administrative staff carries the same results as healthcare workers regarding bacterial contamination highlighting that they can share in the risk of bacterial transmission.