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Background: Brucellosis is known in Iran as an endemic disease; however, its incidence is not the same in all provinces and is higher in some areas.Objective: The present study was designed to determine the epidemiological status and trend of brucellosis in the period from 2015 to 2020 in the south of Fars province, Southern Iran.Methods: This is a cross-sectional analytical study. This study included all patients with brucellosis in the period from 2015 to 2020 whose information had been registered in the Infectious Diseases Center of Larestan city. To collect the data, we used a checklist that included information such as age, gender, number of cases by year and month, occupation, and nationality of the patients with brucellosis. The rate of brucellosis incidence during these years was analyzed using the Cochran-Armitage trend test. P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results:The average annual incidence of the disease was 8.94 per 100 000 population. It has decreased from 26.83 (per 100 000 people) in 2015 to 1.83 (per 100 000 people) in 2020. The results of Cochrane-Armitage process test showed that the reduction in the incidence of the disease from 2015 to 2020 was significant (PTrend = 0.001). The trend of the disease by month also showed that the majority of cases occurred between December and February, with the highest incidence of the disease in February (9.93 per 100 000 people) and the lowest in May (1.1 per 100 000 people) (P = 0.001). Conclusion:Although the results of the present study indicated a decrease in the incidence of the disease in the southern region of Fars province, due to the fact that the disease is common between humans and livestock, there is the possibility of scattered and irregular epidemics in each period.

Background: Hepatitis B and C are now recognized worldwide as dangerous infectious diseases which impose many physical and economic problems on individuals, families, and society. Objectives: The current research was designed to demonstrate the trends of hepatitis B and C in the south of Fars province, southern Iran, from 2015 to 2021. Methods: The current research was a cross-sectional analytical study. All patients infected with hepatitis B and C from 2015 to mid-2021 were enrolled, and their information was registered in the health department of the Larestan Faculty of Medical Sciences. The Cochran-Armitage trend test was used to determine hepatitis B and C incidences. Results: A total of 306 cases of hepatitis B and 128 cases of hepatitis C were registered. The mean age of the individuals with hepatitis B was 40.15 ± 18.95 years, and that of those with hepatitis C was 45.12 ± 13.31 years. The overall incidence of hepatitis B and C was estimated at 18.44 and 7.71 per 100,000 population, respectively. The highest incidence of hepatitis B was observed, with 50.91 and 26.01 per 100,000 population in 2019 and 2018, respectively, and the lowest incidence was reported in 2016 (1.46 cases per 100,000 population). The highest incidence of hepatitis C, with 17.94 and 15.01 per 100,000 people, was reported in 2018 and 2019, respectively, and the lowest incidence (0.36 per 100,000 population) was in 2016. The finding of the Cochrane-Armitage trend test for both types of hepatitis B and C indicated that the trend of hepatitis incidence from 2015 to 2021 had significantly increased (P Trend < 0.001). Conclusions: In general, the incidence of hepatitis B and C has increased significantly; therefore, it is necessary to implement preventive and control programs.

Background In 2020, COVID-19 spread rapidly in Iran and other parts of the world. Some of the epidemiological aspects of this disease remain unknown; therefore, the present study was designed with the aim of determining the trend of incidence and mortality of COVID-19 from February 2020 to July 2021 in southern Iran. Methods The present study was a cross-sectional analytical study that included all people who had COVID-19 in the period from February 2020 to July 2021 and whose information had been registered in the Infectious Diseases Center of Larestan city and MCMC unit. The study area included the cities of Larestan, Evaz, and Khonj, located in the south of Fars province in southern Iran. Results Since the emergence of COVID-19 until July 2021, a total of 23,246 new cases of infection were reported in the southern region of Fars province. The average age of patients was 39.90±18.30 years and the range of ages varied from 1 to 103 years. The results of the Cochran–Armitage trend test showed that the trend of the disease in 2020 was completely upward. The first positive case of COVID-19 was recorded on February 27, 2020. The incidence curve in 2021 is sinusoidal, but in general, the results of the Cochran–Armitage trend test showed that the incidence of the disease increased significantly ( P -trend < 0.001). Most cases were reported in July, April, and the end of March. Conclusion In general, the incidence rate of COVID-19 has varied sinusoidally from 2020 to mid-2021. Although the incidence of the disease increased, the number of deaths has fallen. It seems that the increase in the number of diagnostic tests and the implementation of the national COVID-19 immunization program have been effective in changing the trend of the disease.

Objective: To investigate the trend of animal bites in southern Iran from 2015 to 2019. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study of patients with animal bites who were referred to the Center for Disease Control in the three cities of Larestan, Evaz, and Khonj in Fars province, southern Iran from 2015 to 2019. The trend of animal bites incidence was analyzed using the Cochran-Armitage trend test. Results: In total, from 2015 to 2019, 1 944 cases of animal bites were reported. A total of 79.8% of the cases were men. The overall average incidence of animal bites was 142.93 per 100 000 people. The incidence of animal bites was significantly increased (P trend<0.001). The highest incidence was in November (79.04 per 100 000 people) followed by January (76.1 per 100 000 people) and February (69.48 per 100 000 people); also, the lowest incidence was in August (47.42 per 100 000 people) and July (50.0 per 100 000 people). Conclusions: The incidence of animal bites has significantly increased. Given the importance of rabies, control and management of animal bites should be emphasized and considered.