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Background Rabies is a zoonosis transmitted accidentally to humans and is fatal once clinical signs appear. In Morocco, rabies remains a difficult disease to eradicate, with dogs being the main source of contamination. Transmission of this illness can be avoided by promptly implementing post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) following animal exposure. Inappropriate or delayed PEP increases the risk of acute infection. This study aims to describe and analyze the characteristics of exposure, investigate the factors related to delay in initiating PEP, and evaluate the attitudes and practices of patients towards animal exposure in the region of Ouarzazate between 2016 and 2019. Methods This was a retrospective study with statistical analysis. The data on animal exposure was collected from the Anti-Rabies Center (ARC) located in Ouarzazate Province, Morocco. Results A predominance of male cases (61.3%) among victims of animal exposure was found. The age group of five to 14 years was the most affected (23.5%). The upper limb represented the most frequent site of exposure (49.4%). Around 52.1% of patients presented with multiple lesions. About 54.4% of cases were bitten by a stray animal. Dogs were responsible for 47.8% of the bites. All exposed individuals performed wound cleansing prior to arrival at the ARC. Post-exposure prophylaxis was initiated in 34.5% of cases between 24 to 48 hours, while 26.1% of cases delayed it beyond 48 hours. Around 34% of patients did not complete their vaccination schedule. Regarding the factors associated with the delay in PEP, we found significant associations with patient age, place of residence (urban or rural), distance from the ARC (>30 km or <30 km), nature, number, and injury status (p≤0.05). Significant associations (p≤0.05) were also found with dog bites and their type (domestic or stray). Conclusion Our findings indicate that better awareness about rabies and PEP management is needed, especially among the rural population., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2023, El Bazi et al.)

Streptococcus intermedius is considered as a commensal of the oropharynx, but can be a source of serious infections. We report a case of cerebral abscess in a young man of 18 years, who was admitted to the emergency room for consciousness disorder, and whose cerebral CT showed a frontal mass evoking the diagnosis of abscess. Diagnosis was confirmed by bacteriological examination of puncture fluid which was in favor of Streptococcus intermedius abscess.

Unlabelled: Urinary tract infections (UTI) are a very common reason for consultation and prescription in current practice. Excessive or inappropriate use of antibiotics in treating urinary tract infections is responsible for the emergence and spread of multiresistant uropathogenic bacteria., Aim of the Study: To evaluate the isolation frequency and antibiotic resistance of uropathogenic Escherichia coli strains isolated at the Marrakech region., Material and Methods: We conducted a retrospective study over a period of three years (from 1st January 2010 to 31 December 2012). It included all non-redundant uropathogenic E. coli strains isolated in the microbiology laboratory of the Avicenne hospital of Marrakech, Morocco., Results: During this study, 1472 uropathogenic enterobacteriaceae were isolated including 924 non-repetitive E. coli strains, an overall isolation frequency of 63%. Antibiotic resistance of isolated E. coli strains showed resistance rates to amoxicillin (65%), sulfamethoxazole-triméthropime (55%), amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (43%), ciprofloxacin (22%), gentamicin (14%), nitrofurans (11%), amikacin (8%) and fosfomycin (7%). The number of E. coli strains resistant to C3G by ESBL production was 67, an average frequency of 4.5% of all isolated uropathogenic enterobacteria. The associated antibiotic resistance in the case of ESBL-producing E. coli were 82% for ciprofloxacin, 76% for sulfamethozole trimethoprim, 66% for gentamicin and 56% for amikacin. No resistance to imipenem was recorded for the isolated E. coli strains, which represents an imipenem sensitivity of 100%., Conclusion: Antibiotic resistance of uropathogenic E. coli strains limits treatment options and therefore constitutes a real public health problem. The regular updating of antibiotic susceptibility statistics of E. coli strains allows a better adaptation of the probabilistic antibiotic therapy to local epidemiological data., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Urinary tract infection by extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing enterobacteriaceae (ESBL-E) is a growing infection risk and may even lead in many cases to therapeutic impasses because of their multidrug resistance., Aim of the Study: Follow, over a 5-year period, the evolution of the epidemiological profile of uropathogenic ESBL-E and describe their current level of antibiotic resistance., Materials and Methods: A retrospective work was made over a period of 5 years (from 1st January 2008 to 31st December 2012). It focused on all the ESBL-E strains isolated from all the urinary samples at the microbiology laboratory of Avicenne hospital, Marrakech (Morocco)., Results: We noticed in 5 years, an important increase in the prevalence of ESBL-E. The higher prevalence of ESBL-E (51%) was recorded in the urology department. The study of the antibiotic resistance of the ESBL-E had shown antibiotic co-resistances to the ciprofloxacin (82%), to sulfamethoxazole-trimethropim (85%), to gentamicin (74%), to amikacine (51%). Our results also showed, for the first time in our region, an emergence in the resistance of enterobacteria producing ESBL to imipenem (10%)., Conclusion: The significant increase in the prevalence of ESBL-E has become a concern at the hospitals and in community medicine as well. The study of the resistance of ESBL-E strains antibiotics showed high rates of co-resistance to antibiotics, including the usual urology molecules., Level of Proof: 5., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Allergic diseases are ranked fourth considering the world health organization classification of diseases. The consequences linked to these ailments are huge for public health economics and the diagnosis is awkward due to clinical polymorphism and multifactorial aetiologies. The allergologic diagnosis is the result of weighing in clinical and biological findings. The biological assessment is made of qualitative specific and multiple-allergen serum IgE test, which once positive drives to skin test and each allergen-specific IgE level determination to conclude. Our study aims at displaying biological analysis results of incoming patients with clinical allergy conditions. We carried out a nine months retrospective study, from June 2007 to March 2008, with 200 outwards patients involved. Blood samples were collected using dry tubes and as recommended we first did screening tests for respiratory (Pharmacia Phadiatop) and food (fx 5) allergens, then for positive samples we proceeded to serum specific IgE assay (UniCap, Phadia). We also realized the total IgE assay on 46 patients using Roche Elecsys 2010 technology. 49% of patients enrolled in the study were positive to aerollergens, d1 Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus being the most incriminated (96.4%), and 2.5% to food allergens. On 13% of patients, we noticed a double sensitization to d1 and g6 (pollen of grasses). Concerning the total IgE dosage, we found 50% of patients tested with normal values, 28% of whom having a positive allergologic screening test. Further studies matching clinical data, skin tests to serum IgE assay are necessary to draw the profile of respiratory and dermatological allergies for our patients.