Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security

The Hajj pilgrimage, one of the world's largest and most diverse mass gatherings, poses unique challenges for preventing infectious disease outbreaks. Vaccinations are vital in reducing the risk and spread of diseases during this event. This narrative review examines the impact of vaccination p...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Anas A. Khan, Bander S. Balkhi, Fahad A. Alamri, Ghadah S. Alsaleh, Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq, Hani Jokhdar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-01-01
Series:Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1477893924001017
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850119577376129024
author Anas A. Khan
Bander S. Balkhi
Fahad A. Alamri
Ghadah S. Alsaleh
Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq
Hani Jokhdar
author_facet Anas A. Khan
Bander S. Balkhi
Fahad A. Alamri
Ghadah S. Alsaleh
Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq
Hani Jokhdar
author_sort Anas A. Khan
collection DOAJ
description The Hajj pilgrimage, one of the world's largest and most diverse mass gatherings, poses unique challenges for preventing infectious disease outbreaks. Vaccinations are vital in reducing the risk and spread of diseases during this event. This narrative review examines the impact of vaccination programs on infectious disease mitigation during the Hajj and their broader implications for global health security (GHS). Mandatory vaccination protocols against Meningococcal Meningitis, Yellow Fever, Influenza, pneumococcal diseases, and COVID-19 have demonstrated significant success in controlling infection spread during Hajj. Furthermore, the integration of digital health passports or similar technologies offers the potential to enhance surveillance, streamline vaccination verification, and further minimize risks associated with mass gatherings. This study demonstrates the critical role of vaccination programs in protecting pilgrims. It also explores how technologies can be used to monitor pilgrim health status, enabling rapid identification and mitigation of potential outbreaks, thus contributing to GHS.
format Article
id doaj-art-92b2794498404e3dad5b844cb4e687e6
institution OA Journals
issn 1873-0442
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease
spelling doaj-art-92b2794498404e3dad5b844cb4e687e62025-08-20T02:35:36ZengElsevierTravel Medicine and Infectious Disease1873-04422025-01-016310278410.1016/j.tmaid.2024.102784Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health securityAnas A. Khan0Bander S. Balkhi1Fahad A. Alamri2Ghadah S. Alsaleh3Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq4Hani Jokhdar5Global Center for Mass Gatherings Medicine, Ministry of Health, Department of Emergency Medicine, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia; Corresponding author.Global Center for Mass Gatherings Medicine, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaGlobal Center for Mass Gatherings Medicine, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaInfectious Disease Unit, Specialty Internal Medicine, Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia; Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA; Infectious Disease Division, Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA; Deputyship of Public Health, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaDeputyship of Public Health, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaThe Hajj pilgrimage, one of the world's largest and most diverse mass gatherings, poses unique challenges for preventing infectious disease outbreaks. Vaccinations are vital in reducing the risk and spread of diseases during this event. This narrative review examines the impact of vaccination programs on infectious disease mitigation during the Hajj and their broader implications for global health security (GHS). Mandatory vaccination protocols against Meningococcal Meningitis, Yellow Fever, Influenza, pneumococcal diseases, and COVID-19 have demonstrated significant success in controlling infection spread during Hajj. Furthermore, the integration of digital health passports or similar technologies offers the potential to enhance surveillance, streamline vaccination verification, and further minimize risks associated with mass gatherings. This study demonstrates the critical role of vaccination programs in protecting pilgrims. It also explores how technologies can be used to monitor pilgrim health status, enabling rapid identification and mitigation of potential outbreaks, thus contributing to GHS.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1477893924001017Hajj pilgrimageMass gatheringsInfectious diseasesVaccinationGlobal health security
spellingShingle Anas A. Khan
Bander S. Balkhi
Fahad A. Alamri
Ghadah S. Alsaleh
Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq
Hani Jokhdar
Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
Travel Medicine and Infectious Disease
Hajj pilgrimage
Mass gatherings
Infectious diseases
Vaccination
Global health security
title Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
title_full Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
title_fullStr Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
title_full_unstemmed Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
title_short Vaccinations for Hajj: Enhancing health and global health security
title_sort vaccinations for hajj enhancing health and global health security
topic Hajj pilgrimage
Mass gatherings
Infectious diseases
Vaccination
Global health security
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1477893924001017
work_keys_str_mv AT anasakhan vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity
AT bandersbalkhi vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity
AT fahadaalamri vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity
AT ghadahsalsaleh vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity
AT jaffaraaltawfiq vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity
AT hanijokhdar vaccinationsforhajjenhancinghealthandglobalhealthsecurity