Traveler Health – Things to Know

Article by Doctor of Emergency Resuscitation – Emergency Resuscitation Department – Share99 Phu Quoc International Health Hub

In the face of the complicated situation of the Covid-19 epidemic, if you decide to travel, travelers need to have a medical examination, and equip themselves with disease prevention knowledge to minimize infection.

1. Pre-travel health check-up

Currently, the whole world is "working hard" to minimize the infection and death from Covid-19. This has a significant impact on the economy as well as the tourism industry. In fact, many tourists have missed their trips due to the epidemic. However, if you still decide to make your trip, you need to equip yourself with health care and protection knowledge.

Accordingly, health care for domestic and foreign travelers can be through educational advice. Specifically, visitors will be equipped with pre-trip prevention knowledge and end up with post-trip assessment of common disease exposures at the residence.

The purpose of pre-trip examination is as follows:

  • Advice and guidance for travelers
  • Assess the risk of exposure to preventable diseases.
  • Expected precautions

Assessment of the risk of travel: directly related to the type of travel.

  • Seagoing is less susceptible to infection from natives and animals but is susceptible to infection from the community of co-workers, such as SARS – Cov-2. Travel to create a sense of relaxation, but if combined with the type of adventure there are many risks.
  • Long business trips away from family have many behaviors at risk of infection.
  • The form of tourism according to the tourists, cyclists, raft drivers has a lot of risk of infection.

In addition, travelers with a history of diseases such as asthma, heart disease, peptic ulcer, kidney disease, bladder, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, bronchitis, bronchiolitis, psoriasis, poor immunity should pay special attention.

2. Some precautionary notes when traveling

Preventive measures for travel are as follows:

  • Counseling, education: The role of epidemic prevention measures is to minimize risks, prepare mentally to deal with possible problems or existing problems but will be exacerbated.
  • Food safety, drinking water
  • Avoid insect bites, sunlight
  • Diarrhea of travelers
  • First aid tools, medicines
  • General safety – traffic problems
  • Malaria prevention drugs – the toxicity of the drug
  • Diseases caused by altitude – pressed gas diseases
  • Freshwater exposure – trough fluke
  • Sexually transmitted diseases
  • Rabies – Animal bites

First Aid Box

Bring first aid when traveling

3. Some general tips to ensure health when traveling

3.1. Some things to pay attention to to ensure health

Air travel, where it may be safest to be near the exit exit, take a taxi to wear a seat belt, be resolute with the taxi driver when not ensuring safe driving.

You also pay attention, avoid leaving others to see valuables or money, do not bring furniture that is at risk of being stolen. When nearby the gas station must open the window, the hotel room downstairs is the safest. It is necessary to clearly see that there is an emergency exit for fire prevention, anti-malaria drugs, water disinfectants, avoiding to close danger to children. With the protection of health it is necessary to pay attention to the following:

  • Carrying the remaining drugs in the blister or in the original medicine box avoids confusion.
  • The first aid instrument has an abnormal electrocardicardiary, x-ray, summary of the nearest discharged.
  • It is necessary to know the information about insurance policies, consider buying travel health insurance.
  • Rhinotracheitis must be thoroughly treated before boarding
  • Never agree to the injection when erile is not guaranteed, it is necessary to consider the vial before use.
  • Before traveling, please refer to the medical issue where you are expected to go, such as hospitals, doctors, pharmacies.

3.2 Water and food safety

Motto: "Eat ripe, drink boiled, peeled or forget about it", boil clean water for at least 3 minutes, bottled water must ensure that the lid is not used, chlorine and iodine can be used to disinfect water, avoid using water from taps, ice, uncooked fresh milk. In addition, meat and vegetables must be cooked thoroughly and eaten when it is hot, avoiding cold buffets, spicy dishes and salads, fruits should be peeled before serving.

greens

Eat meat and vegetables when cooked

3.3. Avoid insect bites

It is possible to avoid mosquitoes, ticks, flea bites by applying insect repellent containing 30% DEET on open skin, note long use and high concentrations will be toxic to young children. Wear covered clothing in places at risk of dengue and malaria, or soak, spray clothes, curtains, tents with permethrin to prevent insects from burning.

3.4. Equip some necessary drugs

Antipyretic analgesic, diarrhea medication, insect repellent, anti-UV drug with sunscreen element (SPF) 15 or higher, oral antihistamines, additional cough syrup, vaginal (female) antifungal cream, medical and electrocardiosis should be taken with you if there are abnormalities.

3.5. Avoid alcohol consumption

Due to time zone differences you can get acquainted with the time zone at tourist destinations. When arriving on arrival on the first days it is possible to take 5mg of melatonin before sleep, the morning sun as well as a protein-rich breakfast will be more beneficial. During travel avoid using substances containing alcohol content, foods high in carbohydrates, it is possible to take better sleeping pills at night such as zolpidem.

Alcoholic beverages

You should not use substances containing alcohol content

3.6.Use of intoxicating drugs

Motion motion in adults can take skin-glued scopolamine before traveling for about 8 hours or take 50-100mg of dimenhydrinat 1 hour before departure and then every 4-6 hours. Otherwise the body may be weakened and cause anti-cholinerial side effects.

3.7. Avoid using contaminated water

It is necessary to cook food before use, otherwise when drinking there is a risk of exposure to parasites.

3.8. Avoid sexually transmitted diseases

Prostitution lurks in the shadow of tourism, putting many travelers at risk of sexual infection (STDs), including HIV. Therefore, you should consider and exercise caution to avoid infection with sexually transmitted diseases.

3.9. Vaccinations should be given before traveling

In some countries where yellow fever, meningococtis, cholera are circulating, travelers are advised to get vaccinated before traveling.

In addition, some diseases should be encouraged to be vaccinated or repeated, especially elderly people or unclear vaccinations such as tetanus, welding, polio, diphtheria, influenza, pneumococcal, meningitis, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, plague.

vaccination

Before traveling you should get vaccinated

3.10. Malaria prevention drugs

Malaria prevention drugs are an indispensable drug for preparer who plans to travel. Accordingly, some drugs for malaria prevention should be as follows:

  • Mefloquin: Is the most commonly used malariar that works on chloroquin-sensitive and resistant regions, taking it once a week before arriving in a malaria zone for 1-2 weeks. The drug may occur side effects such as dizziness, gastrointestinal disorders, not used for heavy children < 5kg, phụ nữ có thai 3 tháng đầu, bệnh nhân có tiền sử tâm thần, động kinh, có bất thường dẫn truyền ở tim.
  • Proguanil (Paludrine): 2 capsules of 100mg daily, usable for children > 10 years old, pregnant women or suspected pregnancies.
  • Halofantrin and artemisinin extract: Used to prevent malaria resistant to many other drugs.

Some other drugs should be equipped as follows: Doxycycline, chloroquin phosphate, Primaquin phosphate can be selected when there are contraindications to other drugs.

3.10. Diarrhea of travelers

Traveler's diarrhea is a syndrome characterized by a 2-fold increase in the number of tans, accompanied by abdominal cramps, nausea, abdominal distension, squeezing, fever, discomfort. Symptoms that occur suddenly can be during the trip or after going home and can be self-cured. Liquid stools can be more than 5 times a day, lasting maybe 3-4 days, sometimes all week, especially sometimes 1->3 months. Rapid treatment can shorten the duration of illness to several hours. The most common pathogens are intestinal toxins, Escherichia coli, Shigella, Campylobacter jejuni, Salmonella and Vibrio. Viruses often la rotavirus, Norwalk virus. The main parasites are Giardia lamblia and Entamoeba histolytica. In addition, up to 20-50% of diarrhea cases are still unexplained.

How to prevent diseases: Food safety is the best way to prevent diseases, in some special cases (Sporting events, Important meeting, honeymoon) can use the drug for disease prevention: Bismuth subsalicylate 2v X 4 times / day, doxycylin 100mg per day, trimethroprim/sulphamethoxazol 160/800mg per day, norfloxacine 400mg per day, ciproloxacine 500mg per day.

In case of illness, if there is no fever, do not go out to the blood should take 2 loperamid after the first liquid outing, then take the usual dose, if diarrhea remains until the 3rd time take 2 pills of ciproloxacin or norfloxacin, drink rehydration with Oresol solution, do not take antibiotics, or anti-diarrhea agent for children , suspending dairy foods, if not in remission, go to the nearest medical facility for examination.

3.11. Pay attention to fear of altitude

When up to 3000m above sea level, more than 80% of visitors will have some symptoms of acute mountain drunkenness, the faster they will appear symptoms of the disease, including pulmonary edema and cerebral edema due to altitude, since the specific pressure of oxygen in the air decreases, causing hypoxia. Severe, mild mountain bingeing may increase from mild to severe, including symptoms such as headache, nausea fatigue, severe vomiting, shortness of breath at rest, ataspy, mental weakness, or cyanosis. High-altitude pulmonary edema may appear after 1 few days, usually during sleep with symptoms such as severe shortness of breath, cough, multiple ransha levels, mild fever, and cyanosis. Height-in-altitude cerebral edema may appear after several days of mildly advanced mountain bingeing with constant manifestations of fatigue, gradual loss of alertness, mental disorders, localical neurological signs and coma. There is no perfect backup, just prevention by going up every day < 300m, đối với trường hợp leo cao hơn 3000m kéo dài trong hơn 12 giờ dự phòng bằng 250mg Acetazolamid (Diamox) mỗi ngày bắt đầu 24 giờ trước khi leo và tiếp tục trong 1 số ngày đầu ở độ cao. It is possible to bring the usual headache relieve, acetazolamid can be taken in case of mild mountain intoxicating or take dexamethason 4 mg every 6 hours as a precaution, this drug is intended to treat cases of severe altitude syndrome. Once dexamethason is used, it is necessary to urgently lower the altitude to have a higher concentration of oxygen.

3.12. Be aware of some background medical backgrounds available

Often travelers must treat pre-existing diseases early and actively. Mental preparation and handling of situations of exacerbation of pre-existing diseases.

Bronchitis/ bronchiolitis

For people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, it is recommended to make arterial blood gas before traveling, as the aircraft usually flies at an altitude of 2500m, at this height the healthy PaO2 is reduced to about 60mmHg, it is recommended to equip the person with oxygen before boarding with PaO2 < 70mmHg hoặc độ bảo hòa Oxy < 93% trong suốt chuyến bay. People with increased carbon dioxidemia or live capacity < 50% không nên đi máy bay mà đổi sang phương tiện di chuyển khác.

Asthma

Developed areas often pollute the air, it is advisable to prevent the oncular onc kick-off, you should know how to take antibiotics and corticosteroids yourself according to your abilities.

Heart disease

It is recommended to prevent people with myocardial infarction from traveling for 4-8 weeks. People with cardiovascular disease must be able to walk 100m and climb 12 steps to be able to travel by plane.

Stomach ulcers/ gastric bypass surgery

Patients absolutely do not travel by plane within 10-14 days after abdominal surgery, laparoscopic surgery with CO2 pump should travel after 48 hours to ensure safety. Since reducing HCl and H2 receptor blockers reduces the stomach's natural resistance to diarrhea and cholera while traveling, it is advisable to consider taking active anti-contraceptives or treatments and expanding the use of vaccines to prevent the disease.

Disabled People – Arthritis

It is advisable to anticipate favorable conditions for the elderly and disabled when traveling by air or other means of transport. Control the exacerbating abilities of arthritis.

low heart disease

When suffering from some available background conditions such as heart disease it is necessary to treat diseases early and actively

4. Reviews after travel

If there are health problems during the trip, after returning, it is necessary to examine and find exposure factors to conduct screening and treatment tests, the responsibility of the underlying disease and the spread in the community. The typical problem now is the current SARS – CoV2 epidemic. Therefore, each individual needs to raise awareness, prevent and control diseases when returning from epidemic areas or have passed through epidemic areas to ensure maximum infection for themselves, their families and the community.

Share99 International Health Hub is the address for examination, treatment and prevention of diseases. When performing the examination process at Share99, customers will be welcomed and used modern facilities and machinery systems accompanied by perfect medical services under the guidance and advice of good doctors, well-trained both at home and abroad.

Customers can directly go to Share99 Health System nationwide for examination or contact the hotline here for assistance.

SEE MORE:

  • Signs of measles recognition and prevention during the epidemic season
  • Flu season peak – What should parents be aware of so that their child does not experience complications?
  • Meningocococtis: Infectious disease that threatens healthy young lives in just 24 hours

About: John Smith

b1ffdb54307529964874ff53a5c5de33?s=90&r=gI am the author of Share99.net. I had been working in Vinmec International General Hospital for over 10 years. I dedicate my passion on every post in this site.

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