Anybody heard about Malaria...

[Belle gueule]

Anybody heard about Malaria!!!

 

The news said tonight some peoples have a Malaria. They just arrive from Punta Cana, Dominican Rep.

 

Punta Cana it's close (60 miles!) of Casa de Campo.

 

We will be on Constellation next week and it's stop at the port Casa de Campo.

 

I call tomorrow Health and Welfare Canada.

[smdubowsky]

My wife and I have been going on the Constellation every January. Last year we were in Casa de Campo. When I gave blood several months later and told them I had been in the DR, they initially got bent out of shape because of malaria on the island. They, however, were able to check the details of the DR warning, and found out that it was no problem in the part of the island that we go to and they took my pint.

 

So don't worry and have a good time.

 

Smdubowsky

[hotvwchick]

There was a huge warning on the Canadian national news last night about DR and Malaria. It was their lead story. Evidentally there are 2 people on life support and 8 more in the hospital with malaria contracted in DR. They are warning all potential Canadian visiters(40,000 a year) to take precautions. The government is trying to get it onder control. I guess the hurricane was a good part of the cause. In the mean time, they are suggesting taking Malaria medicine before you leave and repellent.

For more details go the "Foreign Affairs Canada" website and click on "Current Issues" then "Health", then "Dominican Republic" last updated December 7, 2004 for more info.

This particular strain of Malaria is a real bad one and can lead to death(one Canadian is dead).

http://www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/report-en.asp?country=77000#12

Hope this helps!!

 

Jennifer

[jmps]

This story is scary to me. My family is going on the Horizon to Panama, Costa Rica, and Roatan. I have searched the board and not gotten a clear view on whether or not we should take preventitive Malaria treatment. We are going to call our doctor but is there an opinion here on these areas?

[Lois R]

Hi:) I am going to be on the same cruise as the OP.....

 

I am so excited about leaving here on Saturday nothing is going to deter me....:D

 

Hopefully everything will be just fine:)!!!

 

Not meaning to fluff this off...but figure, If it is my time to go...well, at least I will be on my vacation of choice;)

[starsjohn]

I am going to Casa de Camp on the Mil in February. I will consider following this threat closely.

 

While climbing with the American Alpine Institute, we took Malaria pills even though we were several hundred miles away from any known source in Mexico.

 

Thank you for the heads up on this.

 

John

[new_cruiser]

Here is the information from the CDC site on the outbreak:

http://www.cdc.gov/travel/other/malaria_dr_2004.htm

 

Health information by destination is on:

http://www.cdc.gov/travel/

 

They are now recommending the drugs for the DR resort area which is a change from their previous recommendation on malaria in DR.

 

You should also check with your doctor - especially how that advice applies to a cruise ship passenger. The type of mosquitos that transmit malaria bite mainly between dusk and dawn. These drugs have their own risks - they make your blood toxic to the malaria parasite but they also make it slightly toxic to you. It might be reasonable to protect against bites with insect repellant for a one day visit.

 

If think you may want to take the malaria pills you should act quickly. When I took it for another trip, protection with the drug I took required taking the initial dose a week in advance of exposure.

 

In any case use of insect repellant is important - the protection of the drugs isn't 100%. For those going to Central America, there have at times been outbreaks of dengue fever which is also mosquito borne and that doesn't have a vaccine. That mosquito is active during the daytime.

[dot73]

I don't think people should panic but instead take precautions. A good mosquito repellant is always a good idea and also staying out of wet areas, such as marshes, rain forests, etc. A friend of mine is going to Punta Cana next week and she made an appointment with a doctor who specializes in travel medicine and will take his advice. I think the media, as usual, is overdramatizing this story.

[new_cruiser]

Something I read on the CDC site reminded me of an experience on a recent trip. Someone had gotten a spray insect repellant and it was nasty :( - filled the air and smelled terrible. They applied it at breakfast and the whole table was subjected to it.

 

Don't get a spray or aerosol insect repellant or, if you must, be considerate and apply it outdoors away from other people. DEET isn't meant to be taken internally or breathed. To apply it safely to your face from a spray you have to spray it on your hands and apply anyway. The non-sprays allow you to put it where you want without filling the air. I used a timed-release one which had less odor and longer protection than the older types.

[Belle gueule]

Montreal Gazette this morning...

 

Dominican trips okayed

Six Canadians have contracted malaria during trips to the Dominican Republic in the past two months, according to federal officials, who added there is no need for Canadians to avoid travelling to the Caribbean country.

________________________________________________________________

 

The paper wrote...

 

4 Peoples of Ontario, 2 from British Colunbia. Also, 2 from US and more from Europe.

________________________________________________________________

 

We arrive at Casa de Campo this Sunday at 1:00 PM, Departure 11:00 PM.

Around 5:00 PM, it's the worst time because the night coming...

 

I bought Insect Repellent Lotion Watkins, Made in U.S.A.

[LovetheSea]

That is awful! Those poor people. Haiti shares the same island with the D.R. I wonder if this will effect the folks going to Labadee Haiti? They sure have had their share of misfortune lately.

[Belle gueule]

Travel operators move to contain malaria scare

Some agencies say they will allow people booked to the Dominican Republic to change their destination

 

 

CURTIS RUSH

STAFF REPORTER THESTAR.COM

 

Amid worries about a malaria outbreak in the Dominican Republic, some Canadian tour operators announced today that people booked to travel there will be allowed to change their destinations.

And there are reports of a run on the anti-malaria medication at some Toronto pharmacies.

 

Six Canadian tourists have contracted malaria after visiting the Dominican Republic and one person in Toronto was in critical condition.

 

The Canadian Association of Tour Operators issued a news release today saying that it and its member companies will give customers leeway to make changes because of the malaria concern.

 

Those companies include Sunquest, Conquest, Air Canada Vacations and Signature Vacations.

 

For those booked to depart for Punta Cana (where the malaria outbreak seems to be centred), up to and including Dec. 23, they will be allowed to change their booking to an alternative destination, the organization said. Travel dates may also be altered provided departure is prior to April 30, 2005. Changes to either destination or dates will be subject to availability and the tour operators said that should the alternative vacation chosen be at a higher rate, the additional fees will be the responsibility of the traveller.

 

Meanwhile, because of warnings to take an anti-malarial vaccine before departing for the Dominican Republic, some pharmacists are running short of the drug chloroquine.

 

“They’ve been told to get the malaria medication and there’s been a run on it in the last couple of weeks,” said Louise Crandall of the Canadian Phamacists Association. “Shortages come and go.”

 

She said travellers should check with their pharmacist in order to ensure a supply of the medication.

 

Shoppers Drug Mart vice-president Arthur Konviser said there were some shortages but that Shoppers is expecting a new shipment in a day.

 

"There seems to be a shortage of the generic drug, but not the brand drug (Aralen)," Konviser said.

 

Brent Ruddock, a pharmacist with the Drug Information and Research Centre run by the Ontario Pharmacists Association, said the drug was previously on back order, which has "contributed to some problems. If a pharmacy is not able to procure the drug, there are other options."

 

A couple of other drugs can also be taken a day before travel. Chloroquine is prescribed to be taken a week before entering a malaria zone, Ruddock said.

 

David Windross, vice-president of Novopharm Ltd, said the company released 80,000 chloroquine tablets Nov. 23 to meet the demand. Pharmacies, he suspects, were caught off guard by the demand.

 

"The pharmacies might have been ordering the third week of November and couldn't get it, but we now have lots of inventory. It's not a big mover but probably people who are going on vacation in another two months are looking to get it now, so it's putting a bit of a rush on it."

 

It’s been a challenging year for tour operators due to the string of hurricanes that struck many Caribbean islands and the state of Florida.

 

But mostly everything is returning to normal.

 

The hurricane-ravaged Caribbean islands, except for Grenada, are up and running as the busy Christmas and March-break vacation periods approach, according to travel experts.

 

Cruise ships are docking again at most Caribbean ports and golf courses and tourist attractions are running as usual.

 

And the major tourist destinations in Florida — Daytona Beach, Orlando, Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fort Meyers and For Lauderdale — are open for business.

 

“The good thing about the Caribbean destinations is they’ve got experience in this (hurricane-damage) area,” said itravel2000.com president Jonathan Carroll. “They know exactly what they have to do and how quick they have to do it. And nobody is going to miss that Christmas window. That’s your peak period. It carries you. You don’t want to be waiting until May or June.”

 

And travelling at this time of year is a bargain because of the surplus of capacity, according to Carroll.

 

“It’s supply and demand. It’s driving the price down,” he said, adding that a warmer than usual fall season held back travellers from going south.

 

A four-day, all-inclusive vacation in the Bahamas, staying at the Nassau Beach Hotel, is going for $198, he said, and an all-inclusive week vacation to one resort in Puerto Vallarta, leaving Friday, was slashed to $447 from $1,039.

 

Air Canada Vacations has cancelled all Grenada tour packages for the winter because of storm damage. While vacation packages to Grand Cayman were suspended, Air Canada Vacations has resumed flights to the island but won’t offer hotel packages again until the new year.

 

Grenada is still a year away from being back to normal, but most other islands have completed their major rebuilding projects as they overcome supply and worker shortages, said Richard Kahn, spokesperson for the Caribbean Tourism Organization.

 

He said labour and supply shortages have been the biggest problems.

 

“It’s moving the labour around on the islands” Kahn said. “There were people out of jobs in Grenada and the Cayman Islands and those people are being mobilized into the labour force to get things done (elsewhere). The supplies are the biggest issue. Supply is coming from the U.S., South America, other Caribbean islands and donations,” Kahn said.

 

Again this winter, Mexico is the leading tourist destination for Canadians and it’s even more popular now than before because of the malaria scare in the Dominican Republic, said itravel’s Carroll.

 

Mexico is followed by Cuba and the Dominican Republic, which were neck and neck, in attracting Canadian tourist dollars, Carroll said.

 

There are some destinations in Florida that are behind schedule in recovering from the hurricane damage, experts say, because of the extensive damage.

 

Some hotels in Vero Beach, for example, are awaiting supplies and workers to complete their restoration projects, Carroll said. Workers are being brought in from out of state to get the job done.

 

The areas in more popular locales received priority during the restoration work.

 

“They’re always going to go to the main destinations and they’re going to fix the big tourist hotels first,” Carroll said.

 

The hurricanes not only caused infrastructure problems, they left large areas of pooled water that became infested with mosquitoes, and that led to the malaria outbreak at a couple of the tourist resorts in the Dominican Republic — Punta Cana and San Francisco de Marcoris.

 

Carroll said many people have not been allowed to cancel trips to the Dominican Republic because travel insurance won’t recognize fear of malaria as a legitimate concern. People are advised to take anti-malarial medication, apply insect repellent and check with Health Canada or your doctor.

 

“You’ve got the read the fine print,” itravel’s Carroll said. “It’s an extremely unfortunate situation. But these things happen. Anything can happen anywhere. I had two staff there (in the D.R.) last week and they didn’t have a problem. Here in Toronto, we’ve had the Norwalk virus and SARS.”

 

He said the Dominican Republic is dealing with this “proactively rather than reactively by bringing in nurses and doctors and they’re monitoring the situation closely because the Dominican Republic relies so much on tourism,” Carroll said.

 

Brent Carnegie, vice-president of sales for Conquest Vacations in Toronto, acknowledged that more calls came into his office this week from clients concerned about the Dominican Republic but he wouldn’t call it a flood.

 

As for the other Caribbean islands, there are no travel restrictions due to recovery efforts following the hurricane damage.

 

“There is still some vegetation that needs to grow, but otherwise everything is back to normal,” Carnegie said.

 

A number of islands are providing hurricane-damage reports on their websites and some, like Jamaica (http://www.visitjamaica.com) and the Bahamas (http://www.Bahamas.com) are updating them frequently.

 

The best one-stop resource for hurricane information is http://www.onecaribbean.org.

 

With reports from Star files

[Melissa at Mohair Meadows]

I am going on a Panama Cruise in April. I hadn't thought about malaria until I gave blood yesterday. They told me that I would be ineligible to donate blood for a year after exposure to Panama. Just a FYI. I think the risk is small, but interesting nevertheless.

 

Melissa

[ajpack]

We're going to an AI in Punta Cana in February. It's too late to cancel and get a refund. First we heard about the electricity problems in the DR and now this. Maybe it's an omen that we shouldn't go!;) Guess I'll take the DEET.

 

I suppost I won't be able to donate blood for a while after I get home.

[dmarch@islc.net]

If your really worried about it, take a cab to pharmacy and get some anti-malaria pills. They will have the latest and greatest. It's been so long I forget, but I think they take effect immediately. Then their are the pills you take when you get malaria. All this stuff is readily available at the pharmacy.

[greeneg]

Actually, you need to start taking the medication about a week prior to exposure and for 4 weeks after the last exposure.

 

Simplest precaution is to wear a DEET insect repellent at all times.

 

Effective anti-malarials are Rx in the States.