Trend of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Jordan From 2010 to 2016: Retrospective Study.

Background: Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is endemic in the Middle East, with countries such as Syria reporting high incidence rates.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the trends in the incidence of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in Jordan from 2010 to 2016.

Methods: This retrospective study included all cases of CL that had been reported to the Leishmaniasis Surveillance System in the Department of Communicable Diseases at the Jordan Ministry of Health during the period from 2010 to 2016.

Evaluation of the Acute Flaccid Paralysis Surveillance System in Polio-Free Jordan, 2012-2016: Retrospective Secondary Analysis.

Background: As part of the polio-eradication strategy, the World Health Organization (WHO) has established a global acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance system. AFP surveillance has successfully helped Jordan achieve polio-free certification. However, there is a substantial risk of polio importation from neighboring countries including Syria and Iraq.

Knowledge, Awareness, and Compliance of Disease Surveillance and Notification Among Jordanian Physicians in Residency Programs.

Health professionals' knowledge and awareness of the disease surveillance is essential for reporting diseases to health departments. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitudes of Jordanian physicians toward public health surveillance of communicable disease. A cross-sectional study was conducted among resident doctors who were working in 4 main Ministry of Health hospitals and 2 teaching hospitals in Jordan in September 2017.

Innovative Approaches to Improve Public Health Practice in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: Findings From the Sixth Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network Regional Conference.

Public health professionals in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EMR) have limited access to continuing education, including workshops and conferences in public health. Held under the theme Innovative Approaches: Adapting to the Current EMR Context, the Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET) organized and conducted the Sixth EMPHNET Regional Conference from March 26 to 29, 2018. This paper summarizes the key activities including workshops, roundtable discussions, oral and poster presentations, keynote speeches, and side meetings.

Multihospital Outbreak of a Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Deletion Variant, Jordan: A Molecular, Serologic, and Epidemiologic Investigation.

Background: An outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in Jordan in 2015 involved a variant virus that acquired distinctive deletions in the accessory open reading frames. We conducted a molecular and seroepidemiologic investigation to describe the deletion variant's transmission patterns and epidemiology.

Methods: We reviewed epidemiologic and medical chart data and analyzed viral genome sequences from respiratory specimens of MERS-CoV cases.

Jordan Field Epidemiology Training Program: Critical Role in National and Regional Capacity Building.

Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs) are 2-year training programs in applied epidemiology, established with the purpose of increasing a country's capacity within the public health workforce to detect and respond to health threats and develop internal expertise in field epidemiology. The Jordan Ministry of Health, in partnership with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, started the Jordan FETP (J-FETP) in 1998. Since then, it has achieved a high standard of success and has been established as a model for FETPs in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Knowledge, attitude, and behaviors of health professionals towards smoking cessation in primary healthcare settings.

This study aimed to assess the behaviors of multiple health professionals in primary healthcare settings in Jordan towards smoking cessation counseling and to determine the barriers to effective smoking cessation behaviors. A survey of 456 health professionals in primary healthcare settings was conducted. A self-administrated questionnaire was used to collect the data.

Blood Pressure of Jordanian Workers Chronically Exposed to Noise in Industrial Plants.

Background: Occupational studies investigating the association between blood pressure and noise exposure are almost lacking in the Eastern Mediterranean Region countries.

Objective: To determine the association between occupational exposure to high level of noise and blood pressure among a group of workers in Jordan.

Methods: All workers who had been exposing to noise for at least 3 years in 3 plants in Madaba governorate in Jordan were included in this cross-sectional study.

Inclusion of MERS-spike protein ELISA in algorithm to determine serologic evidence of MERS-CoV infection.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) algorithm for detecting presence of serum antibodies against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in subjects with potential infections with the virus has included screening by indirect ELISA against recombinant nucleocapsid (N) protein and confirmation by immunofluorescent staining of infected monolayers and/or microneutralization titration. Other international groups include indirect ELISA assays using the spike (S) protein, as part of their serological determinations. In the current study, we describe development and validation of an indirect MERS-CoV S ELISA to be used as part of our serological determination for evidence of previous exposure to the virus.

Acute respiratory infections among returning Hajj pilgrims-Jordan, 2014.

Background: The emergence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has prompted enhanced surveillance for respiratory infections among pilgrims returning from the Hajj, one of the largest annual mass gatherings in the world.

Objectives: To describe the epidemiology and etiologies of respiratory illnesses among pilgrims returning to Jordan after the 2014 Hajj.

Study Design: Surveillance for respiratory illness among pilgrims returning to Jordan after the 2014 Hajj was conducted at sentinel health care facilities using epidemiologic surveys and molecular diagnostic testing of upper respiratory specimens for multiple respiratory pathogens, including MERS-CoV.

Persistence of Antibodies against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus.

To determine how long antibodies against Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus persist, we measured long-term antibody responses among persons serologically positive or indeterminate after a 2012 outbreak in Jordan. Antibodies, including neutralizing antibodies, were detectable in 6 (86%) of 7 persons for at least 34 months after the outbreak.

Hospital-associated outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus: a serologic, epidemiologic, and clinical description.

Background: In April 2012, the Jordan Ministry of Health investigated an outbreak of lower respiratory illnesses at a hospital in Jordan; 2 fatal cases were retrospectively confirmed by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) to be the first detected cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS-CoV).

Methods: Epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of selected potential cases were assessed through serum blood specimens, medical record reviews, and interviews with surviving outbreak members, household contacts, and healthcare personnel. Cases of MERS-CoV infection were identified using 3 US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention serologic tests for detection of anti-MERS-CoV antibodies.

Stillbirth during infection with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus.

We conducted an epidemiologic investigation among survivors of an outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Jordan. A second-trimester stillbirth occurred during the course of an acute respiratory illness that was attributed to MERS-CoV on the basis of exposure history and positive results of MERS-CoV serologic testing. This is the first occurrence of stillbirth during an infection with MERS-CoV and may have bearing upon the surveillance and management of pregnant women in settings of unexplained respiratory illness potentially due to MERS-CoV.