Abstract
BackgroundRamadan is a month within the Islamic lunar calendar when Muslims are required to fast (abstain from food and drink) during the daytime (from sunrise to sunset) for the entire month. Due to the established connection between fasting and dehydration and acute sialadenitis, the aim of this study is to determine if there is a higher frequency of sialadenitis among the Muslim population during Ramadan than during other months of the year.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective study using the medical records of 120 Muslim patients admitted to the emergency room (ER) and diagnosed with acute sialadenitis over a 5-year period at the Baruch Padeh Medical Center, Poriya, and St. Vincent de Paul (French) Hospital, Nazareth, both located in Israel. The study group were Muslim patients, with the aforementioned diagnosis, admitted during Ramadan, while the control group included patients diagnosed with sialadenitis during the rest of the year. We analyzed overall admission frequency as well as descriptive and diagnostic data, including age, sex, gland involved and several blood test results.ResultsDuring the month of Ramadan, the admission of Muslims with a diagnosis of acute sialadenitis was more than double that during the other months of the year – a difference that was found to be statistically significant (p = 0.001). Additionally, we found that Ramadan sialadenitis patients had significantly higher leukocyte numbers at admission (p = 0.0085) and, importantly, a significantly higher level of dehydration (blood urea nitrogen (BUN)/creatinine ratio) than non-Ramadan sialadenitis patients (p = 0.0001).ConclusionThere is evidence that fasting in Ramadan may increase the risk for the development of acute sialadenitis. Our results suggest that this may be the result of dehydration.
Highlights
Ramadan is a month within the Islamic lunar calendar when Muslims are required to fast during the daytime for the entire month
Our data showed that 21 Muslims were admitted to the emergency room (ER) due to acute sialadenitis in the aforementioned hospitals during the 5 Ramadan months in the timeframe of the study, revealing an incidence of 4.2 cases/month
This incidence was high compared to that during non-Ramadan months: 99 admissions due to acute sialadenitis in 55 non-Ramadan months, resulting in an incidence of 1.8 cases/month
Summary
Ramadan is a month within the Islamic lunar calendar when Muslims are required to fast (abstain from food and drink) during the daytime (from sunrise to sunset) for the entire month. There are several previous reports about metabolic changes related to fasting, such as weight loss and dehydration [4, 5]. Those changes may primarily affect individuals with diabetes [6], but there are reports that Ramadan fasting may cause hypertension [7] and increase the incidence of ischaemic stroke [8]. Previous reports found that the incidence of acute sialadenitis is 27.5 cases per million individuals [16]
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