Surveillance of invasive meningococcal diseases (IMD) must be carried out regularly and continuously in order to detect the emergence of strains of reduced susceptibility to antibiotics for therapeutic and prophylactic use and the appearance of new invasive clones. Molecular-typing approaches allow reliable traceability and powerful epidemiological analysis. This is an epidemiological study of Neisseria meningitidis causing meningitis in Casablanca, Morocco. The grouping was confirmed by PCR mainly on the isolates from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). A total of 245 confirmed isolates of N .meningitidis were obtained between 2010 and 2019 of which 93 % are of group B. Overall, 24 % of all the isolates have a reduced susceptibility to penicillin G, but no resistance to penicillin G has been reported. All the isolated strains are susceptible to third-generation cephalosporins (3GCs). Genotyping by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) of a selection of 18 strains showed that the majority of isolates belong to the invasive clonal complex CC 32(9/18) followed by the CC 41/44(3/18).

This is an analytical cross-sectional study of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) based on data collected between 1 November 2020 and 31 March 2021 in Casablanca focusing on the disease’s epidemiological status and risk factors. A total of 4569 samples were collected and analysed by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR); 967 patients were positive, representing a prevalence of 21.2 % for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The mean age was 47.5±18 years, and infection was more common in young adults (<60 years). However, all age groups were at risk of COVID-19, and in terms of disease severity, the elderly were at greater risk because of potential underlying health problems. Among the clinical signs reported in this study, loss of taste and/or smell, fever, cough and fatigue were highly significant predictors of a positive COVID-19 test result (P<0.001). An assessment of the reported symptoms revealed that 27 % of COVID-19-positive patients (n=261) experienced loss of taste and/or smell, whereas only 2 % (n=72) of COVID-19-negative patients did (P<0.001). This result was consistent between univariate (OR=18.125) and multivariate (adjusted OR=10.484) logistic regression analyses, indicating that loss of taste and/or smell is associated with a more than 10-fold higher multivariate adjusted probability of a positive COVID-19 test (adjusted OR=10.48; P<0.001). Binary logistic regression model analysis based on clinical signs revealed that loss of taste and/or smell had a performance index of 0.846 with a P<0.001, confirming the diagnostic utility of this symptom for the prediction of COVID-19-positive status. In conclusion, symptom evaluation and a RT-PCR [taking into account cycle threshold (C t) values of the PCR proxy] test remain the most useful screening tools for diagnosing COVID-19. However, loss of taste/smell, fatigue, fever and cough remain the strongest independent predictors of a positive COVID-19 result.