Yellow Fever Shot - Is it that risky to get if you're healthy?

[J_M_F]

We were told on our last cruise to the Amazon that WHO now considers the yellow fever shot good indefinitely instead of ten years. We also take malaria meds (usually Mallarone) where that might be a problem. We also were stopped at St Lucia because we had been to Yellow Fever areas earlier in the cruise. After much discussion between the cruise line's lawyers and the port authorities it was decided that those with valid yellow fever shot records could go ashore, those who didn't or had only a doctor's  waiver had to stay on the ship.

Whenever we go to areas where Yellow Fever or Malaria are a problem, we spray our clothes with permethrin (which is good for a number of washings) and use 35% Deet on exposed skin. We have been told that 35% Deet is more effective than 100% and easier on the skin.

 

[clo]

3 hours ago, mmssnb said:

A few things to consider. Some places require the YF vaccine (think places like Kenya). Do they check when you enter? No necessarily, but it can be up to the individual checking and it would be sad to be stopped because you don’t have it.

 

also, if you decide to get it, plan ahead. There is currently a vaccine shortage so you may need to travel to get it or wait longer than you had planned...

 

It's been over ten years since we went to Kenya and Tanzania so I can't remember the details.  But I do know that one of the vaccinations and it was likely YF wasn't available where we live.  Good news is that we were spending time in NYC prior to heading over so were able to get what we needed at a travel med clinic.  And I do remember that it was not cheap.  And, as you said, plan ahead.

[clo]

On 4/6/2019 at 2:33 PM, robbie21 said:

I don't really think healthcare is a do-it-yourself project.

Any chance I get I comment that I wish sites like this wouldn't allow medical questions.

[clo]

2 hours ago, J_M_F said:

We were told on our last cruise to the Amazon that WHO now considers the yellow fever shot good indefinitely instead of ten years. We also take malaria meds (usually Mallarone) where that might be a problem. We also were stopped at St Lucia because we had been to Yellow Fever areas earlier in the cruise. After much discussion between the cruise line's lawyers and the port authorities it was decided that those with valid yellow fever shot records could go ashore, those who didn't or had only a doctor's  waiver had to stay on the ship.

Whenever we go to areas where Yellow Fever or Malaria are a problem, we spray our clothes with permethrin (which is good for a number of washings) and use 35% Deet on exposed skin. We have been told that 35% Deet is more effective than 100% and easier on the skin.

 

FWIW we were in Kenya and Tanzania ten years ago and saw ONE tsetse fly...and it was dead 🙂  We've spent months in Rio and so rarely saw a flying bug that we would laugh about "the fly of Rio."  It's been decades, like maybe five or six, since I've used an insecticide.  My two cents.

[J_M_F]

If we are on a ocean cruise and only stopping in port cities on the ocean we don't worry about Malaria pills, but going up the Amazon or if we are "in country" on a trip we do.

We were in Tanzania two weeks ago and saw plenty of tsetse flies in the Serengeti Park. They can be carriers of sleeping sickness, as well as having a painful bite. We were glad we had sprayed our clothes and had our Deet. 

Flies are often seasonable. We were in Machu Picchu in late November a number of years ago and the little black flies were a major problem. Their bite leaves a blood blister that last for a couple weeks that itches like crazy. I was lucky in that the only time I got bit was after washing my hands and forgetting to reapply the Deet. We have talked to folks who were there at other times of year and they had no problems. On the other hand we were on a cruise that stopped in Peru, also in November, and a lady we met took a shore excursion to Machu Picchu and was so covered in bites she had to go to the infirmary.

We have been to the lower Amazon, the upper Amazon (in Peru), Myanmar, the Mekong River, central India, and three safaris in Africa, all areas where Malaria meds are recommended. Some trips we don't see a lot of bugs, some trips we do. It pays to be prepared.