Vaccinations in Hajj

Determinants of tetanus, diphtheria and poliomyelitis vaccinations among Hajj pilgrims, Marseille, France.

BACKGROUND It has been observed that Muslim pilgrims departing France for Mecca have low national immunization rates against tetanus, diphtheria and poliomyelitis (TdP). Our purpose is to identify immigration, socio-economic and socio-cultural determinants of vaccination coverage against TdP. METHODS A cross-sectional survey study was conducted in late 2006 among 580 pilgrims in preparation w...

The Hajj

Mass gatherings can be hazardous. Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam, is the largest annual mass gathering of humans, with more than 2 million people wearing specified garments, following prescribed religious rituals and fulfilling their religious obligations. There is a risk of communicable disease introduction, rapid amplification and, as pilgrims travel home, the potential spread into countries...

Vaccinations of International Travelers

Hypoglycemia in diabetics during Hajj.

ypoglycemia in diabetics is more common than appreciated.1 It is common in diabetics on insulin. At least one-third of insulin treated patients suffer an episode severe enough to cause loss of consciousness at some time, 10% have such a coma annually, and at some stage 3% suffer recurrent attacks so frequently as to be incapacitating.2 After working in the Emergency Department of Ajiad Hospital...

Reply to Hajj-Chahine.

We would like to thank J. Hajj-Chahine [1] for his insightful comments on our paper, specifically regarding the discrepancy in the outcomes of patients with postsurgical iatrogenic acute aortic dissection type A (iAADA) presented in our study [2] vs results others have reported [3–5]. We reported on 100 patients with iAADA enrolled in the German Registry for Acute Aortic Dissection Type A (GERA...