Upper respiratory infection after cruising?

[mrscopper]

I wonder if they ever change the room filters, or disinfect them. I think taking your own pillow, if you can, is a good idea. I am an oxygen user and always concerned with infection. I use to fly a great deal before I retired and always seems to get URI and LRI. Recently on the Eurodam and came home healthy! I would hate to give up cruising.

[realnurse2]

On the Noordam I coughed my way through a 2 week cruise. When I was out of my cabin it seemed better and settled down. I imagine it was the air filter in the cabin which was pretty much over the bed. Annoying ! :(

[VermeulT]

I always used to come home from vacation with a head cold that would eventually become something more.

For me, it was the planes... Major germ factories... But going some where tropical when you've come from and go back to freezing temps... It's hard on the body.

 

 

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[goleta]

PFT?? Pulmonary Function Test?? The pulmonologist couldn't do that in his office? Doesn't sound right; have been going to one for several yesrs.

 

Prislosec is for GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), which can cause bad cough.

GERD meds often help and is used when URI symptoms persist. Asymptomatic GERD can make cold symptoms persist. Prilosec was given to me after a long suffering cold with fast results. Guess I have silent GERD at times.

[cporses]

It's not the cruise ships. Wherever you get large groups of people from all over the world mingled together you will get outbreaks of various illnesses. You could get it on a train, you could get it on a plane, and even on a ship. Just keep yourself healthy, take normal precautions, and if you are contagious, don 't travel. That's why you. Should have Travel Insurance.

Just my thoughts

 

Bob

 

 

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[bchillin]

I just came back from a southern Caribbean cruise and contracted an URI around the sixth day of a 10 day cruise. Three years ago I came down with the same thing half way through. I thought I was well and immune system in good shape...!! Travel on planes, generally twice a week and have managed not to have this kind of infection. Oh well, despite the illness I had a good time and am recuperating at home.

[puli]

Just returned recently from a 15 day Panama Canal transit. A lot of passengers were from Australia (over 200) all having booked for a 37 days B2B2B2B . They started with a 7 day Caribbean cruise before we joined the group for the second leg Florida to LA.. and were continuing on to Alaska.

 

On our segment there was a lot of coughing and by the end of this 15 day portion this "respiratory bug" seemed to have spread throughout the entire ship.

 

One of the Aussies (a good friend of ours ) was sick, basically bed-bound with that frightening choking cough the entire 15 days we were on the ship. She was treated on board by the doctor multiple times with antibiotics, inhalers, respiratory therapy treatments etc. and was seen by her own doctor following her return to Australia some 40 days later.

 

After all this treatment and multiple doctors' visits a blood test finally showed that she was suffering from whooping cough....probably contracted on that long flight from Brisbane to Miami. She is not longer infectious but was so the first 2 weeks...she is still sick and was told by her doctor that it could last for 3 months. There is no real medical treatment.

 

Although this was not a HAL ship, I could not help but remember contracting a similar sounding and frightening respiratory "bug" on a Venice R/T on the NA a few years ago.

Not sure how many were infected but enough so that the dining room sounded like a sick bay.

 

Whooping cough is highly contagious and though not considered life threatening in adults a possible outbreak on a cruise ship should be taken as seriously as an intestinal virus.

 

Numerous passengers were treated by the medical staff on board for the same or similar respiratory problem and yet there was no directive nor follow up.

 

I wonder if the Center for Infectious Disease should be involved!

[OldBoot]

The air conditioning/heating system seems to aggravate the condition. I succumbed to the "cruise ship cough" on our Med. cruise this May. It was worse overnight and when riding on enclosed tour buses. Agreed, its a side effect of congregating with a new bunch of people. But it does seem to be aggravated by an enclosed air system, such as overnight in the stateroom or after an hour or so on a tour bus.

 

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[CI66774]

Returned from a 26-day cruise two weeks ago (lots of time changes and "white night" affecting sleep, etc.). Two days after I returned - sure enough - came down with a sinus infection/coldish thing. Quite frankly, I'm surprised I didn't get sick while on the cruise. I guess my body willed itself to stay healthy while on the cruise and "relaxed" when I flew home, knowing I would be back in my own bed soon. I've only gotten sick one on a cruise the Queen Mary II - eight days into the eleven day cruise I came down with the worst cold of my life. I stayed in my cabin hallucinating and delusional for three days wishing I was dead. Being sick away from home is the worst!

Edited June 7, 2014 by CI66774

[sail7seas]

puli

Just returned recently from a 15 day Panama Canal transit. A lot of passengers were from Australia (over 200) all having booked for a 37 days B2B2B2B . They started with a 7 day Caribbean cruise before we joined the group for the second leg Florida to LA.. and were continuing on to Alaska.

 

On our segment there was a lot of coughing and by the end of this 15 day portion this "respiratory bug" seemed to have spread throughout the entire ship.

 

One of the Aussies (a good friend of ours ) was sick, basically bed-bound with that frightening choking cough the entire 15 days we were on the ship. She was treated on board by the doctor multiple times with antibiotics, inhalers, respiratory therapy treatments etc. and was seen by her own doctor following her return to Australia some 40 days later.

 

After all this treatment and multiple doctors' visits a blood test finally showed that she was suffering from whooping cough....probably contracted on that long flight from Brisbane to Miami. She is not longer infectious but was so the first 2 weeks...she is still sick and was told by her doctor that it could last for 3 months. There is no real medical treatment.

 

Although this was not a HAL ship, I could not help but remember contracting a similar sounding and frightening respiratory "bug" on a Venice R/T on the NA a few years ago.

Not sure how many were infected but enough so that the dining room sounded like a sick bay.

 

Whooping cough is highly contagious and though not considered life threatening in adults a possible outbreak on a cruise ship should be taken as seriously as an intestinal virus.

 

Numerous passengers were treated by the medical staff on board for the same or similar respiratory problem and yet there was no directive nor follow up.

 

I wonder if the Center for Infectious Disease should be involved!

 

 

 

There is a vaccine for protection from pertussis..... whooping cough. Did none of these people have protection?

 

Edited June 7, 2014 by sail7seas

[CruiseGal60]

On my last cruise I came down with such a bad cough about 10 days into a 14 day cruise. It was so bad I could hardly breathe and was forced to go to the ship doctor. It lasted about 3 weeks even had go see my own Dr twice. We did not fly.

[puli]

Most of us have not had a DPT shot since we were children. That is one of the reasons why whooping cough has spread so rapidly in our neck of the woods. The other is of course, parents not wanting their children to have any type of vaccinations.

 

Blood work done on my Aussie friend showed she had been vaccinated many ,many years ago but she was no longer protected. Now of course, she is but at a great cost.

 

Perhaps if these "cruise colds" were investigated/followed up on we would find that whooping cough is truly alive and well on the high seas. If that could be documented then a recent DPT shot could be required for boarding.

 

Oddly, our family physician gave a DPT shot to my DH before we cruised but did not even mention it to me! I wrongly supposed since I had had whooping cough as a child that I had lifetime immunity... Now I know that that is not true so I plan to have blood work done to see if I need to be re-vaccinated .

[frankc98376]

Yes, it's called Cruise Crud :( Never sure, though, if it's picked up on the plane rather than on the ship. But we were on one cruise a few years ago where just about everyone on our roll call came down with it.

 

We both caught the respiratory crud that was going around the Zuiderdam in May. Considering the options we were glad it was only head and chest colds :)

[cruisinjudy]

I came down with a URI on our Panama Canal cruise in May. Interestingly we had two ceiling leaks during the cruise which it was mentioned that is was probably the air conditioning system. The second leak actually came out of the air conditioner. The first one was in the corner of the room. Maybe the ship should have paid for my doctor visit on the ship.

[goleta]

We managed to avoid any illnesses but did not fly. However, not only were there lots of coughing passengers but our waiter had a bad cold and several of the room stewards had colds. They said it was going around with the crew. But they just had to tough it out with medicine and keep going. They couldn't take sick days just be moved to less passenger contact during the worst part of their illness.

 

Bingo!!! Colds can be transmitted by coughing but usually by someone infected coughing into their hands and then touching something (fomite, look it up). We touch the same door knob, surface, then touch our nose, mouth, face or eyes and we get sick. Same as Noro........was your hands well and don't touch your face and cough into the area of your arm near the elbow.

Watch people while in a restaurant or anyplace and see how often they touch their nose, mouth, then hand you something! We all do it and don't even know it. We are all doomed! :)

Edited June 7, 2014 by goleta

[Stratheden]

The air conditioning/heating system seems to aggravate the condition. I succumbed to the "cruise ship cough" on our Med. cruise this May. It was worse overnight and when riding on enclosed tour buses. Agreed, its a side effect of congregating with a new bunch of people. But it does seem to be aggravated by an enclosed air system, such as overnight in the stateroom or after an hour or so on a tour bus.

 

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Yes I also contracted the same thing after a coach tour and then a cruise last year. I am sure it is caused by being in confined spaces with continual air conditioning. The same germ laden air is being pumped around and around. We are ona 22day Med cruise next year. I plan to spend most of my time out in the fresh air.

[goleta]

There is a vaccine for protection from pertussis..... whooping cough. Did none of these people have protection?

 

 

Oh my! I don't know what governmental agency would be involved but some should have been. In the US, the CDC and the local PHDs would be. The disease can be treated with antibiotics if started within a certain time frame of onset of symptoms. Unless your friend got sick 7-21 days into the trip, there is a chance he got it before he flew. I have dealt with many outbreaks of this disease and we did everything we could to keep people off of planes who tested positive for the disease and still in the infectious period. I have to tell you people do travel on planes when they are told to isolate in the home for X number of days. While investigating cases, we often use interviewing tactics to find out travel plans before they know what we are up to. We have taken people off of planes and have had to have homeland security contact airlines to get passenger info to prevent others from getting ill.

The cough can last for a very long time but does not mean you are contagious.

All adults need to be revaccinated against the disease if they have not had a recent booster. So sad his vacation was ruined!

[goleta]

Most of us have not had a DPT shot since we were children. That is one of the reasons why whooping cough has spread so rapidly in our neck of the woods. The other is of course, parents not wanting their children to have any type of vaccinations.

 

Blood work done on my Aussie friend showed she had been vaccinated many ,many years ago but she was no longer protected. Now of course, she is but at a great cost.

 

Perhaps if these "cruise colds" were investigated/followed up on we would find that whooping cough is truly alive and well on the high seas. If that could be documented then a recent DPT shot could be required for boarding.

 

Oddly, our family physician gave a DPT shot to my DH before we cruised but did not even mention it to me! I wrongly supposed since I had had whooping cough as a child that I had lifetime immunity... Now I know that that is not true so I plan to have blood work done to see if I need to be re-vaccinated .

 

Probably cheaper and faster to just get a DTAP than a blood test.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

...I decided, as geeky as it looks, I will wear a mask next time we fly.

 

That is what my doctor recommends. The cruise lines should require it of their ill crew members also, IMO.

[puli]

Oh my! I don't know what governmental agency would be involved but some should have been. In the US, the CDC and the local PHDs would be. The disease can be treated with antibiotics if started within a certain time frame of onset of symptoms. Unless your friend got sick 7-21 days into the trip, there is a chance he got it before he flew. I have dealt with many outbreaks of this disease and we did everything we could to keep people off of planes who tested positive for the disease and still in the infectious period. I have to tell you people do travel on planes when they are told to isolate in the home for X number of days. While investigating cases, we often use interviewing tactics to find out travel plans before they know what we are up to. We have taken people off of planes and have had to have homeland security contact airlines to get passenger info to prevent others from getting ill.

The cough can last for a very long time but does not mean you are contagious.

All adults need to be revaccinated against the disease if they have not had a recent booster. So sad his vacation was ruined!

 

This was a cruise leaving from Miami and my friend did not show any symptoms until after she had been in Miami and /or on the ship for at least 8 days. Sad to say she was not the only one on board with that horrid choking, gagging cough. I would not be surprised if others also contracted whooping cough. She was told by her doctor that she was probably contagious the first 2 weeks, which was just when our group was cruising.

[pv girl]

Our Doctor required all his older patients to get the shot about 3 years ago. He said if we did not get the shot and got whooping cough, he would not take care of us. Our insurance paid all but a small co-pay. The Dr. said any shots we had for it as kids were no longer good. I never had measles and that shot also protected for measles, mumps, so I feel better now as there have been measles outbreaks in our area. Many younger parents are not getting their kids vaccinated now, so us older folks are vulnerable when around kids if our childhood shots are no longer good..

 

Flying is the scary part. From our rural home to any European gateway takes 3 flights and about 22 hours. Lots of germ exposure. But we keep on cruising and taking land trips - too much fun to miss.

[Ine]

Just wondering if anyone has returned from a cruise and developed an upper respiratory infection several days later? We returned on 5/3 and my DH began with symptoms that seemed like a cold, led to lots of coughing and a diagnosis from a doctor of an upper respiratory infection. We did fly home, and there was a woman sitting next to him who was coughing, so maybe he caught it that way.

 

Anyone else have this?

Last year on the flight home there was a lady coughing and sneezing sitting behind me. The plane was full, I tried to find a different seat, that was impossible.

Yes 2 days later I was in bed, coughing, sneezing etc.

[Watson's aunt]

Hi

 

not all colds are colds.. The last may cruise on Amsterdam people were coughing all over the ship some worse than others. The problem was Pollen. Alaska had the worse pollen season this year since they begaan recording it.. Passsengers said the plooen was every where and on everthing. Even people who had no allergies were suffering. A cold bug is in its glory in a group of people it will effect everyone in that group. thats like one kid goes to school with a cold within a few weeks almosteveryone at that school will have it.

 

 

Mary

[mllewis48]

Yes on a Repo from FLL to Seattle and then on to Alaska I developed a Sinus infection and my wife Bronchitis, she missed almost all of Alaska. Both on Antibiotics and the wife on Codeine. Upon return home she went to Statcare, they thought she had Pneumonia but just a bad case of Bronchitis. We told the ships Dr. we wanted his home address so we could send him a Christmas card since we became so close. Can't be sure if it was from the flight to FLL or just the closeness and numbers of passengers on the ship, many were hacking throughout the trip.

 

 

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[LovesBeagles]

I was on the cruise that puli talked about. I am also a nurse who works in an allergy office. Trust me to say that this was totally different. I am glad to say that our friend is on the mend and the rest of us are ok.

 

i think that the doctors on board need to be aware that whooping cough is on the rise.

 

Everyone is aware of noro virus. A contagious respiratory disease is more serious and long lasting.

 

Bottom line. Consider all possibilities