Pattern of medical problems among Haj pilgrims admitted to King Abdul Aziz Hospital, Madinah Al-Munawarah

This prospective epidemiological study was done at King Abdul Aziz Hospital, Madinah Al-Munawarah, during the 1993 Haj season, to identify the medical problems of pilgrims. Out of 23,806 pilgrims who attended this hospital during the study period, 773 (3.25%) were admitted as medical cases. Mean age of admitted cases was 60.4 ± 11.4 years. Pneumonia (45.8%), diabetes mellitus (20.7%) and ischemic heart disease (15.3%) were the most common diseases among pilgrims. Respiratory, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases affected 74%, 57% and 23% of the pilgrims. There were 57 deaths, with a mortality rate of 7.4%. Myocardial infarction was the most common cause of death. A large number of cases (32.6%) discharged themselves against medical advice. Old age, poor physical fitness, multiple diseases, neglect in continuous treatment of known chronic diseases and failure to seek early medical advice were the major factors responsible for morbidity and mortality.