فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

   Background and Objectives: The Arbaeen pilgrimage is one of the largest religious mass gatherings in the world. Numerous studies have shown that mass gatherings can serve as catalysts for the spread of communicable diseases. Therefore, monitoring and oversight of pilgrims in this mass gathering is an immediate priority. This research aims to provide a comprehensive picture of the health risks associated with this event and offer evidence-based insights to guide public health policies and strategies.   Methods: In this systematic review and meta-analysis, articles that have focused on prevalence of communicable disease among the Arbaeen pilgrims were searched in the Science Direct, Embase, Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, SID, Magiran and Google Scholar databases, without a time limit. In order to perform a meta-analysis of the collected studies, the random effects model was used, and the heterogeneity of studies was investigated using the I2 index. Moreover. data analysis was conducted using the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA) software.   Results: In 14 studies with a combined sample size of 1,062,495, the prevalence of respiratory disease was found to be 34.1% (95% CI: 19.7–52.1%). For gastrointestinal disease, the prevalence was 11% (95% CI: 8.2–14.5%) across 11 studies, encompassing a total sample size of 1,058,045.   Conclusion: The findings of this study, which show a high prevalence of respiratory and gastrointestinal infectious diseases among participants in Arbaeen mass gathering, underscore the need for health policymakers to implement effective prevention and reduction strategies. These should include specialized training for attendees and healthcare providers, aligned with research-based protocols focusing on the four levels of disease prevention.