Practical Vaccine Advice

[TheShag]

Goo day! Looking for practical advice for appropriate vaccines for upcoming cruise to Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia. Agencies such as WHO, suggest the whole gambit of jabs most of which seem a bit overkill. Looking for experienced Asia travellers' experiences/thoughts. Many thanks!

[Goldconnection]

We check with our PC physician. We give her a list of all the countries we will visit and she does the research. Vaccines are recommended based on her research and our medical history. I would never trust anything dealing with my health to an “experience Asia traveler’s practical advice”.

[TheShag]

3 hours ago, Goldconnection said:

We check with our PC physician. We give her a list of all the countries we will visit and she does the research. Vaccines are recommended based on her research and our medical history. I would never trust anything dealing with my health to an “experience Asia traveler’s practical advice”.

While I am certasinly not an 'anti-vacc'er', I suppose the BEST advice is to go real experts:

 

The PHAC and WHO recommend the following vaccinations for Thailand: hepatitis A, hepatitis B, typhoid, cholera, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, meningitis, polio, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis), chickenpox, shingles, pneumonia and influenza.

 

The PHAC and WHO recommend the following vaccinations for Indonesia: hepatitis A, hepatitis B, typhoid, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, meningitis, polio, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR), Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis), chickenpox, shingles, pneumonia and influenza.

[Milhouse]

Base recommendation would be to go to a travel clinic.  My experience is that I find them more knowledgeable than my family doctor since they focus on travel vaccinations and will be more in the know about hot spots.  And I find they are pretty good in asking questions about where you're going (not just country but city versus rural areas) and explaining the risks for each area.

 

Advice from a rando like me on the Internet is to at least get your Hep A & B series particularly if you are going to eat at local eateries (which IMO is half the fun).  IMO tentanus should be kept up to date regardless.  Whereas some of the other shots like typhoid, yellow fever, and Japanese encephalitis likely can be skipped if you are keeping to cities/urban areas.  Again, you'll get better and more customized advice from a travel clinic and you need to assess your own risk tolerance.

[Goldconnection]

Stay healthy and enjoy any upcoming cruises you might have. 😄

[SClakeliving]

On 10/5/2023 at 3:45 PM, Milhouse said:

Base recommendation would be to go to a travel clinic.  My experience is that I find them more knowledgeable than my family doctor since they focus on travel vaccinations and will be more in the know about hot spots.  And I find they are pretty good in asking questions about where you're going (not just country but city versus rural areas) and explaining the risks for each area.

 

Advice from a rando like me on the Internet is to at least get your Hep A & B series particularly if you are going to eat at local eateries (which IMO is half the fun).  IMO tentanus should be kept up to date regardless.  Whereas some of the other shots like typhoid, yellow fever, and Japanese encephalitis likely can be skipped if you are keeping to cities/urban areas.  Again, you'll get better and more customized advice from a travel clinic and you need to assess your own risk tolerance.

Another rando here 😁 but I agree with Milhouse. we too are going on a cruise soon to India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and I am NOT getting the typhoid, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis and cholera vaccines as we will be in cities for a brief time and not out in rural areas. We have Hep A & B already (got it for a trip to China a few yrs ago) and have the rest just as a general course of vaccines. I do however recommend you take and use a good insect repellent  with at least 30% DEET to prevent getting bit by mosquitos that transfer those diseases. Just my opinion.

[Torfamm]

One thing many are not aware of is that the yellow fever vaccine is only recommended for people up to 59 years old.

Another is that not having it can limit your ability to travel into a country if you are unvaccinated and you’ve been in a country where yellow fever is a concern.

 

Those two issues would make me want to be vaccinated while I was eligible.
 

 

[IWantToLiveOverTheSea]

I looked at U.S. CDCP recommendations.  There's a chart you can use to get recommendations by age, medical situation, etc.  And there are notes about each country.  But basically, it sounds like Hepatitis A and B are recommended for SE Asia countries, plus staying current on routine vaccinations such as Tetanus, flu, shingles, and Covid. Yellow fever and malaria generally are not recommended unless you'll be in a lot of rural areas. Cholera is widespread in the Philippines but rare in travelers, so not recommended. In general, typhoid isn't an issue.  But as Torfamm indicated, if you've recently been in countries with yellow fever, you may need a yellow fever vaccine to get in the country. 

 

Some U.S. states have databases in which you can look up when you were last vaccinated for a particular disease.