Leveraging wastewater surveillance for managing the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and concerned pathogens during FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) has been proven effective for the monitoring of infectious disease outbreaks during mass gathering events and for timely public health interventions. As part of Qatar's efforts to monitor and combat the spread of infectious diseases during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ (FWC'22), wastewater surveillance was used to monitor the spread of SARS-CoV-2, human enterovirus, and poliovirus. The screening covered five major wastewater treatment plants servicing the event locations between October 2022 and January 2023.

Cigarette smoking as a risk factor for ischaemic stroke in young South Asian male migrants to Qatar: The BRAINS study.

Background: The incidence of stroke in the Middle East is high, given its relatively young population. Smoking is a well-recognized risk factor for ischaemic stroke, and its high regional prevalence may partly account for this increased stroke risk. This research aims to determine whether young male South Asian migrants in Qatar were adversely affected by stroke depending on their smoking status.

Dosage, time, and polytherapy dependent effects of different levetiracetam regimens on cognitive function.

Objective: Cognitive impairment is a potential drawback of antiseizure medications. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of different levetiracetam drug regimens on cognitive function.

Methods: A retrospective analysis identified 221 patients diagnosed with seizures who underwent cognitive screening.

Drug-resistant epilepsy: Definition, pathophysiology, and management.

There are currently >51 million people with epilepsy (PWE) in the world and every year >4.9 million people develop new-onset epilepsy. The cornerstone of treatment in PWE is drug therapy with antiseizure medications (ASMs).

Prevalence and genetic characterization of clinically relevant extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

Introduction: Among Gram-negative bacteria (GNB), (), such as () and (), are the most clinically relevant pathogens in healthcare settings. Infections secondary to these pathogens are widely common but multidrug resistance (MDR) in has become a significant challenge with increased morbidity, mortality, and cost of management. The escalating global prevalence of MDR in has led to limited treatment options, raising an urgent need for novel antimicrobial therapy(s) and detailed studies exploring underlying resistance mechanisms.

Seizure clusters.

Acute repetitive seizures, also called seizure clusters, are common phenomena in patients with epilepsy. They are a burden on patients and their caregivers and may be very disruptive to the patients' lives. They may progress to prolonged seizures or status epilepticus if they are not aborted as soon as possible.

Evaluation of automated molecular tests for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 in pooled nasopharyngeal and saliva specimens.

Background: Pooling of samples for SARS-CoV-2 testing in low-prevalence settings has been used as an effective strategy to expand testing capacity and mitigate challenges with the shortage of supplies. We evaluated two automated molecular test systems for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in pooled specimens.

Methods: Pooled nasopharyngeal and saliva specimens were tested by Qiagen QIAstat-Dx Respiratory SARS-CoV-2 Panel (QIAstat) or Cepheid Xpert Xpress SARS-CoV-2 (Xpert), and the results were compared to that of standard RT-qPCR tests without pooling.

Epidemiology of Multidrug-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the Middle East and North Africa Region.

Over the last decades, there has been a dramatic global increase in multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens particularly among Gram-negative bacteria (GNB). is responsible for various health care-associated infections, while MDR causes significant morbidity and mortality. Middle East and North Africa (MENA) represent an unexplored geographical region for the study of drug resistance since many of these countries are at crossroads of high volume of travel, diverse expatriate populations, as well as high antibiotic consumption despite attempts to implement antimicrobial stewardship programs.

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for epilepsy treatment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Introduction: The aim of this study is to provide the reader with a review on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) treatment in epilepsy in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, to describe the extent and factors associated with its use among patients with epilepsy (PWE), and to recommend how effectively we will be able to reduce this alarming use.

Material And Methods: Retrospective literature search from 1945 to December 2019, regarding CAM use in the MENA region, using electronic databases (PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Web of Science).

Conclusion: The use of CAM and consultation of traditional healers for the treatment of epilepsy has so far been widespread practice for centuries in the MENA region.

Correction: Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA by direct RT-qPCR on nasopharyngeal specimens without extraction of viral RNA.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA by direct RT-qPCR on nasopharyngeal specimens without extraction of viral RNA.

To circumvent the limited availability of RNA extraction reagents, we aimed to develop a protocol for direct RT-qPCR to detect SARS-CoV-2 in nasopharyngeal swabs without RNA extraction. Nasopharyngeal specimens positive for SARS-CoV-2 and other coronaviruses collected in universal viral transport (UVT) medium were pre-processed by several commercial and laboratory-developed methods and tested by RT-qPCR assays without RNA extraction using different RT-qPCR master mixes. The results were compared to that of standard approach that involves RNA extraction.

Prevalence and Incidence of Drug-Resistant Temporal Lobe Epilepsy in Qatar.

Background: Information on the epidemiology of temporal lobe epilepsy associated with hippocampal sclerosis (TLE-HS) from Qatar and the developing countries is scarce. To acquire knowledge on the incidence and prevalence of drug-resistant TLE-HS in Qatar, we designed this analytical and extrapolative systematic review of the existing literature.

Material And Methods: We searched the electronic database PubMed from 1947 until April, 2018, using the following search terms in the title: "epilepsy" OR "temporal lobe" OR "hippocampal sclerosis" AND "epidemiology" OR "incidence" OR "prevalence.

Unexpected brain imaging findings in patients with seizures.

New imaging technologies have advanced our ability to localize the epileptogenic zone in patients with epilepsy. As a result of the constant improvement of the image quality, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has become the most important ancillary tool in the management of patients with epilepsy. Magnetic resonance imaging for the evaluation of patients with epilepsy should be done using a special temporal lobe protocol and read by physicians experienced with the findings in patients with epilepsy.

Severe rebound disease activity after fingolimod withdrawal in a pregnant woman with multiple sclerosis managed with rituximab: A case study.

Although pregnancy is potentially protective against relapses of multiple sclerosis, severe rebound of disease activity after withdrawal of fingolimod may occur. We report a woman with multiple sclerosis who discontinued fingolimod in the first month of her pregnancy. She developed severe disease rebound which responded poorly to steroids.

Current status of stroke in Qatar: Including data from the BRAINS study.

Background: Qatar is located on the north-eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Qatari natives account for less than 15% of the population while the largest migrant group comprising 60% derives from South Asia. Despite projections that stroke burden in Qatar will increase with population ageing, epidemiological studies focusing on stroke in Qatar are relatively scarce.

Electroencephalography in epilepsy: look for what could be beyond the visual inspection.

Since its starting point in 1929, human scalp electroencephalography (EEG) has been routinely interpreted by visual inspection of waveforms using the assumption that the activity at a given electrode is a representation of the activity of the cerebral cortex under it, but such a method has some limitations. In this review, we will discuss three advanced methods to obtain valuable information from scalp EEG in epilepsy using innovative technologies. Authors who had previous publications in the field provided a narrative review.

Characteristics of patients with confirmed epilepsy and psychogenic nonepileptic seizures in Qatar.

Objective: The Middle Eastern country of Qatar opened its first epilepsy monitoring unit (EMU) in late 2015. This study compared demographic and clinical characteristics of patients with confirmed epilepsy to those of patients with confirmed psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES).

Methods: Data were collected via retrospective chart review on 113 patients admitted for evaluation to the Qatar national health system EMU between November 2015 and May 2017.

Oral disease-modifying therapies for multiple sclerosis in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) region: an overview.

Background: The introduction of new disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for remitting-relapsing multiple sclerosis (RRMS) has considerably transformed the landscape of therapeutic opportunities for this chronic disabling disease. Unlike injectable drugs, oral DMTs promote patient satisfaction and increase therapeutic adherence.

Review: This article reviews the salient features about the mode of action, efficacy, safety, and tolerability profile of approved oral DMTs in RRMS, and reviews their place in clinical algorithms in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Clinical presentation, epidemiology, neurophysiological findings, treatment and outcome of nonconvulsive status epilepticus: a 3-year prospective, hospital-based study.

This study reports the prevalence of Nonconvulsive Status Epilepticus (NCSE) in patients with altered mental status (AMS), and describes the clinical presentation, etiology, neurophysiological findings, neuroimaging, treatment, and outcome of NCSE in Qatar. Recording duration of continuous EEG monitoring was also discussed. This was a 3-year, prospective, hospital-based study involving patients with AMS and continuous EEG monitoring admitted to the Emergency and ICUs of Hamad Hospital, Qatar.

Optimization and stratification of multiple sclerosis treatment in fast developing economic countries: a perspective from Qatar.

Objective: The introduction of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) - with varying degrees of efficacy for reducing annual relapse rate and disability progression - has considerably transformed the therapeutic landscape of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). We aim to develop rational evidence-based treatment recommendations and algorithms for the management of clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) and RRMS that conform to the healthcare system in a fast-developing economic country such as Qatar.

Research Design And Methods: We conducted a systematic review using a comprehensive search of MEDLINE, PubMed, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (1 January 1990 through 30 September 2016).

Epilepsy in Qatar: Causes, treatment, and outcome.

Objective: Qatar is a small country on the Eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Its population is a unique mixture of native citizens and immigrants. We aimed to describe the features of epilepsy in Qatar as such information is virtually lacking from the current literature.

Slow pseudoperiodic lateralized epileptiform discharges in nonconvulsive status epilepticus in a patient with cerebral palsy and a large central meningioma.

The presence of cerebral palsy and that of slow growing brain tumors are risk factors for convulsive and nonconvulsive status epilepticus. Nonconvulsive status epilepticus (NCSE) needs electroencephalographic (EEG) monitoring to be confirmed as it may be clinically subtle. Furthermore, it may present with a variety of ictal EEG morphologies.

Isolated brainstem involvement in a patient with hypertensive encephalopathy.

Hypertensive encephalopathy typically presents with headache, confusion, and bilateral parietooccipital vasogenic edema. Brainstem edema in hypertensive encephalopathy usually occurs in association with typical supratentorial parieto-occipital changes and is usually asymptomatic. We report here a patient with hypertensive encephalopathy, with isolated brain stem involvement on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).