Epidemiological profile and factors influencing severity in acute poisoning at the province of Al Hoceima, Morocco, 2013-2015

We conducted a descriptive and analytical study of 410 cases of acute poisoning collected in the province of Al Hoceima between January 2013 and December 2015. Its objectives were to describe the epidemiological and clinical profiles of patients, then to identify the factors associated with severe poisoning occurrence in that province. We performed descriptive and bivariate analysis using EPI Info 7. Incidence during the study period was generally stable with an average of 33.72 cases per 100,000 population per year. The average age was 26.33 ± 14.83 years old. The Sex-ratio female to male was 1.02. Poisoning was caused mainly by gas products, food, medicines and household products. The circumstances of the poisoning were accidental in 82.38% of the cases. Acute intoxications were severe in 33 cases.A percentage of 22.73% among the cases required hospitalization. The fatality rate was 2.93% at 95% confidence interval = [1,3% - 4,6%] during the study period. Gaseous products were the leading cause of death. The identified factors of severity were household and industrial products (p-value = 0.0035), rural residency (p-value = 0.0032) and suicide attempts (p-value: 0.0003). The mandatory notification of poisoning cases to both the primary health care facilities and the private sector and the standardization of the poisoning report form are required to improve toxicovigilance in Al Hoceima and at National level. Raising the population awareness as to carbon monoxide via education and social media is also needed

Seroprevalence of brucellosis among farmers in Morocco

From17 to 31 December 2017, a cross‑sectional study was conducted by selecting a study population in numerous farms spred over 30 douars covering the entire province of Sidi Kacem. A total of 430 people were interviewed, using a structured questionnaire in Arabic languages including clinical symptoms.A 3-5 ml venous blood sample was collected from each patient. Of all patients, 189 (44%) were male and 241 (56%) were femelle. Sample sera were tested for Brucella antibodies using rose Bengal plate test and immunoglobulin (Ig) M/IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for confirmation.Of all people surveyed, 212 were confirmed positive for brucellosis, giving an overall seroprevalence of 49.30% (212/430). Of these, 128 (60.4%) were males and most of whom were married. However, the maritial status and educational level appears not to affect the seroprevalence of brucellosis for both sexes. Among patients who claim to have brucellosis related symptoms (n = 211), 101 subjects were IgG positive / IgM negative and 9 were IgM positive / IgG negative. However, 1 and 117 cases among those who profess not to have any symptoms of brucellosis were IgM positive /IgG negative and IgG positive / IgM negative, respectively.It is concluded from the current study that brucellosis is highly prevalent in humans in Sidi Kacem province, where animal breeding is common. Preventive and control measures should immediately and strictly be implemented to protect animals and humans from brucellosis

Seroprevalence of Leptospirosis among High-Risk Individuals in Morocco

International audienceBackground: Leptospirosis is an anthropozoonotic reemerging neglected infectious disease underreported in most developing countries. A cross-sectional study was performed between 17 and 23 February 2014 to estimate the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among high-risk populations in Casablanca (Morocco).Methods: A total of 490 human serum samples (97.6% males) were collected in 3 high-risk occupational sites including the biggest meat slaughterhouse (n = 208), a poultry market (n = 121), and the fish market (n = 161). A total of 125 human blood samples were also collected from the general population and used in this study as a control group. To detect the presence of anti-Leptospira, sera were screened with in-house IgG and IgM enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Positive samples were tested by Microscopic Agglutination Technique (MAT) using a panel of 24 serovar cultures and cut point of 1 : 25.Results: Seroprevalence of leptospirosis among the control group was 10.4% (13/125). A high seropositivity among the overall seroprevalence of 24.1% (118/490) was observed in the high-risk groups of which 7.3% (36/490), 13.7% (67/490), and 3.1% (15/490) were for anti-Leptospira IgM, IgG, and both IgG and IgM antibodies, respectively. Most of the positive individuals were occupationally involved in poultry (37.2%), followed by the market fish (26.1%) and the meat slaughterhouse (14.9%) workers. Among all ELISA-positive serum samples, 20.3% (n = 24) had positive MAT responses, of which the Icterohaemorrhagiae (n = 7) is the most common infecting serogroup followed by Javanica (4), Australis (2), and Sejroe, Mini, and Panama (one in each). In the remaining 8 MAT-positive sera, MAT showed equal titers against more than one serogroup.Conclusion: Individuals engaged in risk activities are often exposed to leptospiral infection. Therefore, control and prevention policies toward these populations are necessary

Abstracts of 1st International Conference on Computational & Applied Physics

This book contains the abstracts of the papers presented at the International Conference on Computational & Applied Physics (ICCAP’2021) Organized by the Surfaces, Interfaces and Thin Films Laboratory (LASICOM), Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University Saad Dahleb Blida 1, Algeria, held on 26–28 September 2021. The Conference had a variety of Plenary Lectures, Oral sessions, and E-Poster Presentations. Conference Title: 1st International Conference on Computational & Applied PhysicsConference Acronym: ICCAP’2021Conference Date: 26–28 September 2021Conference Location: Online (Virtual Conference)Conference Organizer: Surfaces, Interfaces, and Thin Films Laboratory (LASICOM), Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University Saad Dahleb Blida 1, Algeria