Pattern of skin diseases among pilgrims during Hajj season in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
BACKGROUND
Skin diseases among pilgrims are considered to be one of the possible health problems in our area. Data supporting this observation are scanty and sparse. The aim of this study was to report the most common skin diseases seen in a 15-day period.


METHODS
We retrospectively collected all new cases of skin diseases diagnosed during a 15-day period at King Faisal Hospital, the nearest general medical center to Mina. Pilgrims gather at Mina (which harbors more than two million pilgrims every year) to perform their Hajj.


RESULTS
During the Hajj season in 1998, 731 new patients were seen; 63.3% were men and 36.7% were women. Of these cases, Saudi citizens represented 42.5% of the total patients. The peak age group ranged from 20 to 39 years. The incidence in Saudi patients was more than that in other nationalities. Dermatitis of various etiologies (23.6%) was found to be the most common skin disease. Pyoderma was found to be more common in Saudis and Asians than in Arabs, whereas Arabs suffered from intertrigo much more than Asians and Saudis.


CONCLUSIONS
A high incidence of skin diseases such as pyoderma and intertrigo among pilgrims of such a large congregation is understandable. Investigating these skin infections is worthwhile because they are preventable, easily diagnosed, and are curable in the majority of patients.
Department of Dermatology, King Faisal Hospital, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
M I
MI
Fatani
K A
KA
Al-Afif
H
H
Hussain
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007514:Islam; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012621:Seasons; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014195:Travel