Background and Objective:Each year millions of Muslims perform pilgrimage to Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It is particularly stressful during the peak five days, when all rituals have to be performed at specific periods of time at different sites. Poor diabetes control in people with diabetes predisposes to morbidity and increases risk of acute complications. We wanted to see how well their blood glucose control was before coming to Hajj and whether they were aware, about self management of Diabetes and what were reasons for hospital admissions.Method:We performed an observational prospective study, based on questionnaire. Sixty one patients were enrolled after taking informed consent. Patients included in the study were known or newly diagnosed diabetics who were admitted to KAMC between 1st and 30th Zil’Hajj.Results:Of the total 61 patients, 16 were newly diagnosed, (not known diabetic, before), while 45 were known diabetics. Among known diabetics, about 77% patients had poor diabetes control on admission, 72% did not bring glucometer, about 55% received diabetic education before coming to Makkah; 37% were doing SMBG occasionally and only 22% were aware that more frequent SMBG required during illness.Conclusions:Most people in our study population suffered from poor glycemic control before coming to Hajj. A significant number were unaware of their diagnosis. The most significant risk factor in our study was a lack of knowledge about self-management of diabetes and Hajj specific management.

Background:  Hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism are prevalent conditions with potentially crippling health consequences that globally affect all populations. Hyperthyroidism is overproduction and persistent release of thyroid hormones that can be stratified into a number of subtypes with varying magnitudes and treatment outcomes. Despite of decades of treatment of hyperthyroidism with radioiodine, the success of treatment is still debatable and influenced by many factors.  Objective: To determine outcomes associated with treatment of hyperthyroidism with radioiodine. Methods: All patients screened for thyroid disease at King Abdullah Medical City, Makkah in between 2012-17 were included in the analysis (N = 353). Eighteen questions were used to assess the presence or absence of symptoms associated with hyperthyroidism. 251 out of 353 patients were found eligible for screening with thyroid-stimulating hormone, free triiodothyronine (fT3) and free thyroxin (fT4). On the basis of laboratory analysis, 73 patients were eligible for the differing RAI therapeutic regimens. Treatment outcomes were assessed 6 months after the patients received RAI therapy, at which time they were classified as being hypothyroid, euthyroid, or hyperthyroid. Results: Females were predominantly affected by hyperthyroidism (75.2%) compared with males (24.8%). However, males were significantly more likely than females to have Graves’ ophthalmopathy (p < 0.01), anxiety (p < 0.05), and insomnia (p < 0.05). A total RAI dose of ≤15 mCi was effective in eliminating most hyperthyroidism: ≤12 mCi, 26/29 = 89.7%; 12.1–15 mCi, 28/30 = 93.3%. Using bivariate analysis, the association of treatment effectiveness with each of the symptoms and comorbidities revealed significant correlations only for diabetes mellitus (rho = −0.428, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Our data suggests that radioiodine remains an effective option of treating hyperthyroidism in most of the patients who qualify for it.