Public Health:
Pandemic H1N1 and the 2009 Hajj
Shahul H. Ebrahim,1,*
Ziad A. Memish,2
Timothy M. Uyeki,1
Tawfik A. M. Khoja,3
Nina Marano,1
Scott J. N. McNabb1
The annual Hajj pilgrimage of more than 2.5 million pilgrims from more than 160 countries is held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) (1) (see the figure). Hajj is a deeply spiritual journey undertaken by Muslims at least once in their lifetimes. Hajj-related infectious disease outbreaks in recent decades have focused attention on Hajj as a global public health security challenge of extraordinary dimensions (1–5). This past summer, a KSA–World Health Organization (WHO) consultation process developed the Jeddah recommendations on mitigation for the effects of the current pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus during the 2009 Hajj, which is the last week of November (6). Here, we outline some of the realities associated with meeting those recommendations and the most recent plans to help mitigate the transmission burden.
1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
2 Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
3 Executive Board, Health Ministers' Council for Cooperation, Council of Gulf States, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
* Corresponding author. E-mail: Sbe2{at}cdc.gov
