Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link Skip directly to A-Z link Skip directly to A-Z link
Volume 15, Number 11—November 2009
Letter

Hajj Pilgrims’ Knowledge about Acute Respiratory Infections

Cite This Article

To the Editor: Hajj pilgrimage is a yearly event in which >2 million Muslims from around the world gather in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Such high density of crowding presents a risk for local outbreaks and for worldwide spread of infectious agents. Acute respiratory infection (ARI) is the leading cause of admission to Saudi hospitals during the Hajj (1). In Marseille, France, after administration of systematic questionnaires, we recorded attack rates of ARI up to 60% in cohorts of returned Hajj pilgrims in 2006 (2). This potential risk is of particular concern because of the influenza A pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus (3). ARI transmission can be efficiently reduced by simple, low-cost physical measures, including use of face masks and hand hygiene. Awareness and acceptability of these measures among pilgrims, however, are limited (4).

We conducted a knowledge, attitudes, and practices survey that addressed these issues among Hajj pilgrims departing from Marseille during October and November 2008, several months before the outbreak of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus. A total of 528 persons (290 males, 238 females) who attended a pre-Hajj meningococcal vaccination campaign were invited to participate in a face-to-face interview during which they completed our questionnaire. We achieved a 100% response rate. Mean age of participants was 61 years (range 18–94 years). Most pilgrims were born in North Africa (92%), had education above a primary certificate (81%), were unemployed (56% of persons <65 years of age), and were traveling to Saudi Arabia for the first time (78%). Ten percent had chronic pulmonary disease.

We assessed knowledge of ARI using 18 questions about symptoms and sources of contamination. Knowledge questions were scored 1 for the correct answer and 0 for incorrect or “don’t know” answers. Overall, the score of true responses was only 26% (interquartile range [IQR] 21%–37%). Scores were higher for respondents <65 years of age (32% [IQR 21%–42%] vs. 26% [IQR 16%–32%], p<0.00001 by Kruskal-Wallis test). Scores were also higher for female pilgrims (32% [IQR 21%–37%] vs. 26% [IQR 21%–37%, p = 0.01). No other demographic or health factor had significant influence.

Respondents believed the following were sources of contamination for ARI: sneeze and cough products (58.1%), dirty hands (43.9%), contact with ill persons (40.5%), saliva (17.2%), promiscuity (17.0%), food (12.1%), drink (9.1%), air conditioning (3.4%), and contact with animals (0.4%); 16.7% had no knowledge about ARI sources. When asked about their perceived risk of acquiring ARI during the pilgrimage and contaminating their relatives on returning home, 26% of respondents perceived no or little risk, 20% perceived some risk, and 37% perceived important risk; 17% did not know. Surveyed pilgrims knew the following were symptoms of ARI: cough (64.4% of respondents), dyspnea (45.1%), fatigue (33.3%); expectoration (21.0%), fever (15.2%), rhinitis (8.7%), nasal obstruction (4.0%), and headache and sneeze (3.8% each); 14.4% of pilgrims surveyed did not know any ARI symptoms. Less than 50% of respondents were aware of social distancing, curative treatment, and use of a face mask as precautions to reduce the spread of ARI agents (Table). However, when informed about the effectiveness of those prevention measures, most pilgrims were willing to wear a mask (92%), frequently wash their hands (98%), use hand disinfectants (89%), and use disposable handkerchiefs (97%) (Table).

Saudi health authorities recommend use of surgical face masks (5); however, data conflict about the protective effect of such masks during the pilgrimage (5,6). Use of face masks varies according to the origin of Hajj pilgrims; in 1 study, only 15% of pilgrims from the Middle East, 17% from Europe and the United States, and 45% from Southeast Asia used a mask (4). Promotion and distribution of free masks increased their use from 34% to 81% in another cohort of Saudi pilgrims (6). National Health Service for England does not advise the use of masks, considering compliance with this advice unlikely because many Muslims believe that covering the face during the Hajj is prohibited and because masks need to be of high quality and changed at least every 6 hours to remain effective (7). Recent studies demonstrated that surgical and N95 masks were equally effective in preventing spread of PCR-detectable influenza virus when used by infected patients. These masks also were potentially effective at preventing respiratory virus acquisition by household contacts of infected persons when worn by healthy persons. However, effectiveness depended largely on adherence to mask use (8,9).

Maintenance of good hand hygiene is also effective in reducing spread of respiratory infection. The World Muslim League has issued a fatwa allowing use of alcohol-based hand-rubs on skin as a disinfectant (10).

The demonstration of high acceptability of simple physical measures to prevent ARI encourages the education of pilgrims during the pretravel encounter. The results also support conclusion that masks, hand-rubs, and disposable handkerchiefs should be provided to pilgrims, along with strong advice about the risk for ARI, to increase adherence to prevention measures.

Address for correspondence: Philippe Brouqui, Service des Maladies Infectieuses et Tropicales, Hôpital Nord, AP-HM, 13015 Marseille, France; email: philippe.brouqui@medecine.univ-mrs.fr

Top

Acknowledgment

We are grateful to C. Gaillard and our medical students for their help in conducting this study. We thank Lin Chen and Vanessa Field for critical review and editing of the manuscript.

Top

Philippe Gautret, Georges Soula, Philippe Parola, and Philippe Brouqui
Author affiliations: Hôpital Nord, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Marseille, Marseille, France

Top

References

  1. Ahmed  QA, Arabi  YM, Memish  ZA. Health risks at the Hajj. Lancet. 2006;367:100815. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  2. Gautret  P, Yong  W, Soula  G, Gaudart  J, Delmont  J, Dia  A, Incidence of Hajj-associated febrile cough episodes among French pilgrims: a prospective cohort study on the influence of statin use and risk factors. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2009;15:33540. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  3. Novel Swine-Origin Influenza  A (H1N1) Virus Investigation Team, Dawood FS, Jain S, Finelli L, Shaw MW, Lindstrom S, et al. Emergence of a novel swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) virus in humans. N Engl J Med. 2009;360:260515. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  4. Al-Shihry  AM, Al-Khan  AA, Mohammed  AG. Pre-Hajj health-related advice, Makkah, 1999. Saudi Epidemiology Bulletin. 1999;6:2931.
  5. Choudhry  AJ, Al-Mudaimegh  KS, Turkistani  AM, Al-Hamdan  NA. Hajj-associated acute respiratory infection among Hajjis from Riyadh. East Mediterr Health J. 2006;12:3009.PubMedGoogle Scholar
  6. Abdin  EZ, Choudhry  AJ, Al-Naji  A. Effect of use of face mask on Hajj-related respiratory infection among Hajjis from Riyhad. A health promotion intervention study. Saudi Epidemiology Bulletin. 2005;12:278.
  7. Gatrad  AR, Shafi  S, Memish  ZA, Sheikh  A. Hajj and the risk of influenza. BMJ. 2006;333:11823. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  8. Johnson  DF, Druce  JD, Birch  C, Grayson  ML. A quantitative assessment of the efficacy of surgical and N95 masks to filter influenza virus in patients with acute influenza infection. Clin Infect Dis. 2009;49:2757. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  9. MacIntyre  CR, Cauchemez  S, Dwyer  DE, Seale  H, Cheung  P, Browne  G, Face mask use and control of respiratory virus transmission in households. Emerg Infect Dis. 2009;15:23341. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar
  10. Ahmed  QA, Memish  ZA, Allegranzi  B, Pittet  D. Muslim health care workers and alcohol-based handrubs. Lancet. 2006;367:10257. DOIPubMedGoogle Scholar

Top

Table

Top

Cite This Article

DOI: 10.3201/eid1511.090201

Related Links

Top

Table of Contents – Volume 15, Number 11—November 2009

EID Search Options
presentation_01 Advanced Article Search – Search articles by author and/or keyword.
presentation_01 Articles by Country Search – Search articles by the topic country.
presentation_01 Article Type Search – Search articles by article type and issue.

Top

Page created: December 09, 2010
Page updated: December 09, 2010
Page reviewed: December 09, 2010
The conclusions, findings, and opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by any of the groups named above.
file_external