Introduction: Saudi Arabia was affected by an outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). We aimed to determine the perception of risk and level of stress among nurses. Methodology: A questionnaire survey was administered to determine the perceptions of risk of MERS-CoV infection. Results: The majority of the participants were females (332; 86.0%), and there were 54 (14.0%) males. Of the 386 respondents, nurses constituted the majority of the respondents (293; 75.9%), and there were 34 doctors (8.8%). The percentage of exposure was found to be greater in those who were working in the intensive care unit (ICU) (89; 23%). There was a significant difference in the worry and fear scale of contracting the MERS-CoV infection between participants who worked in isolation areas, ICUs, and emergency rooms (mean: 3.01 ± 1.1) compared to participants who worked in areas that are less likely to admit and have MERS-CoV suspected or positive cases (mean: 2.77 ± 1.1; p = 0.031. Females were significantly more worried and fearful of contracting the virus compared to males (mean: 2.92 ± 1.1 versus 2.61 ± 1.0, respectively; p = 0.045). Conclusions: MERS-CoV caused a relatively significant level of distress among nurses. There was a difference in the worry and fear scale of contracting the MERS-CoV infection between participants who worked in areas likely to admit and have MERS-CoV suspected or positive cases. After the campaign, the level of confidence got higher and the participants were more adherent to the infection control precautions.

The main objectives of this paper were to estimate the consumption patterns of tobacco use among King Saud University (KSU) undergraduate students; and investigate different risk factors which may contribute to tobacco use among female students. A representative sample (n=7550) of the total KSU undergraduate student population of 69,498 (males and females) was selected, stratified according to college and gender. A modified version of the WHO/CDC Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) questionnaire was used for data collection. Overall smoking prevalence among KSU students was estimated at 14.5%, prevalence among male students (32.7%), and females (5.9%). Independent risk factors for smoking among males were found to be: age, father's smoking habits, and "friends' smoking habits"; while among females were: sister's smoking habits and "friends' smoking habits." The findings of this study re-emphasize the significance of peer pressure on smoking among university students of both sexes; influence of family members, usually of same sex. We need to foster gender-sensitive tobacco prevention intervention programs, to prevent youngsters of both sexes from taking up such habit. We also need to raise awareness of girls and young women, of the consequences of smoking in general, water-pipe in specific, on their own health, that of their spouses, families, and off-springs, many of whom could develop chronic respiratory disorders, as passive smokers in the beginning/potential smokers themselves, later on. All such efforts should be backed and supported by strong governmental commitment, to ensure success of their implementation accordingly.

BackgroundThe draft Global Technical Strategy for malaria aims to eliminate malaria from at least 10 countries by 2020. Yemen and Saudi Arabia remain the last two countries on the Arabian Peninsula yet to achieve elimination. Over the last 50 years, systematic efforts to control malaria in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has successfully reduced malaria cases to a point where malaria is now constrained largely to Jazan Province, the most south-western area along the Red Sea. The progress toward elimination in this province is reviewed between 2000 and 2014.MethodsData were obtained from the Ministry of Health case-reporting systems, activity reports, unpublished consultants reports, and relevant scientific published papers. Sub-provincial population data were obtained the national household censuses undertaken in 2004 and 2010. Rainfall data were obtained from the Meteorological Department in Jazan.ResultsBetween 2000 and 2014 there were 5522 locally acquired cases of malaria and 9936 cases of imported malaria. A significant reduction in locally acquired malaria cases was observed from 2000 to 2014, resulting in an average annual incidence (2010–2014) of 0.3 cases per 10,000 population. Conversely imported cases, since 2000, remain consistent and higher than locally acquired cases, averaging between 250 and 830 cases per year. The incidence of locally acquired cases is heterogeneous across the Province, with only a few health districts contributing the majority of the cases. The overall decline in malaria case incidence can be attributed to coincidental expansion of control efforts and periods of exceptionally low rainfall.ConclusionsJazan province is poised to achieve malaria elimination. There is a need to change from a policy of passive case detection to reactively and proactively detecting infectious reservoirs that require new approaches to surveillance. These should be combined with advanced epidemiological tools to improve the definitions of epidemiological receptive and hotspot malaria risk mapping. The single largest threat currently remains the risks posed by imported infections from Yemen.

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Tobacco use is increasing among young people, especially in Gulf nations such as Saudi Arabia. The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence and behavioural patterns of tobacco use among undergraduate students at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia during the academic year 2008/09 and investigate factors that influenced their tobacco use. A cross-sectional study was done of a representative sample (n = 6793) of the undergraduate student population using a modified version of the global youth tobacco survey questionnaire. The prevalence of smoking was 14.5% among students, 22.2% and 2.2% among fathers and mothers and 43.1% and 14.8% for male and female siblings; 15.0% reported all or most of their friends smoked. The most important independent predictors of smoking were: friends' smoking (some: OR = 6.7 and all: OR = 54.9), sister's smoking (OR = 2.2), mother's smoking (OR = 2.1), single status (OR = 1.7) and age (OR = 1.18).

To our knowledge, no study has examined the persistence of sleep disordered breathing in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients. We examined the time course of SDB in ACS patients by assessing them within days of the acute event and again after 6 months. Consecutive patients with ACS were asked to voluntarily participate in the study. Patients underwent an overnight polysomnography (PSG) approximately 3 days after the acute event. Patients with an apnea hypopnea index (AHI) > 10/h then underwent another PSG after they were stable (approximately 6 months). Fifty patients were studied. First PSG showed an AHI was 23.1 +/- 3.6/h. A second PSG was performed 6.1 +/- 0.3 months later on 21 patients and showed an AHI > 10/h in the first assessment. The AHI and the obstructive apnea index did not change over the 6 months. However, the central apnea index all was lower at the second assessment.

In addition to knowledge, socioeconomic factors, such as family income, household crowding, and the number of siblings are associated with asthma control among children in Saudi Arabia. Further research is needed to investigate the role of these factors.

To investigate a cluster of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) cases in a women-only dormitory in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in October 2015, we collected epidemiologic information, nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal swab samples, and blood samples from 828 residents during November 2015 and December 2015–January 2016. We found confirmed infection for 19 (8 by reverse transcription PCR and 11 by serologic testing). Infection attack rates varied (2.7%–32.3%) by dormitory building. No deaths occurred. Independent risk factors for infection were direct contact with a confirmed case-patient and sharing a room with a confirmed case-patient; a protective factor was having an air conditioner in the bedroom. For 9 women from whom a second serum sample was collected, antibodies remained detectable at titers >1:20 by pseudoparticle neutralization tests (n = 8) and 90% plaque-reduction neutralization tests (n = 2). In closed high-contact settings, MERS coronavirus was highly infectious and pathogenicity was relatively low.