Malaria and Dengue Fever Shots?

Hi Kelly,

Economic development and public health efforts have eliminated malaria from all of the Caribbean islands except Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti.) That doesn't mean a visitor here can't spread malaria but of the approximately 1,300 cases of malaria diagnosed in the United States each year, the vast majority were in travelers and immigrants returning from malaria-risk areas like sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian subcontinent. Occasionally there is dengue here, and a couple of kids on STX died from dengue last year. Unfortunately there is no vaccination for malaria or dengue.

I know someone who had Dengue this June, in addition to the dozen or so cases a year ago that sent multiple people on life-flights to Miami and resulted in a couple of deaths, as well. All the cases were diagnosed in people who lived close to one another in and around William's Delight. The man I know who had it this summer is a landscaper and more at risk of being bit by the wrong mosquito than the average person.

Aren't there pills for malaria? I know some people who just went vacationing in Africa- they had to take pills before they left the USA.

A few years ago, I traveled in Chile, Peru and Dominican Republic. Each trip I consulted a travel doctor to take whatever advance shots were recommended or required... to the extent available and reasonably priced. I am almost certain I took something for malaria for the Dominican Republic.

From what I learned, travel shots, pills, etc. protect in different ways, to varying degrees and for different lengths of time. If you are concerned, a travel doctor/specialist is a very worthwhile resource, in my opinion. There is also information on the internet about "travel shots and immunizations". In the process you can discover other precautions for minimizing the unpleasant, or even deadly, risks of microbial flora, etc. when you travel in places foreign to your native inner microbial world. Some of the precautions are behavioral (like avoiding all untreated or unboiled water -- even as ice in drinks, salads and other uncooked foods that have been washed in local water, and brushing teeth with local water). In one case I was traveling with 7 other North Americans for two weeks, and I was the ONLY one to avoid all the common digestive side effects. Since I was traveling for all-day dance seminars this was an important result!

I never consulted a travel doctor about USVI, which never seemed to me to merit such consultation, although I often follow the easy precautions (behavioral, not shots or pills) out of grateful habit.

-- Joanna

I spoke with my doctor about the vaccines I should get before I move to STT. She told me Hepatitis A and B, Tetanus, and Typhoid were the ones to get. I asked her specifically about Dengue fever meds as well as Malaria and she recommended not taking the preventive meds as the side effects aren't worth it. She also told me that if you are in good health and contracted one of these you should be able to fight it off just fine.

At her suggestion, I opted to only get the shots.

Hope this helps some!

See you all real soon!

Pink

Hi blu.

Yes, there are pills for malaria but they require a six week lead time and Kelly is traveling next week. In any case, I doubt a reputable doctor would prescribe malaraia pills for anyone traveling to the USVI because it's not a problem here.

Thank You all for being so informative. I wasn't too worried about it, but it never hurts to ask.

Thank You,
Kelly

Dengue is certainly not limited to the William's Delight area - la Grand princess and many other areas have had cases. Some people just assume that they have a monster case of the flu and never report the illness.

If one travels to tropical locations then one must just accept tropical diseases as part of the potential outcome.
There are different strains of dengue, ranging from severe flu like symptoms - take ibuprofen and go to bed etc.- to fatal.
It is not so much how healthy one is, rather, what strain one has contracted.

Although health compromised individuals, the very young, and the elderly are always at most risk for poor outcomes in any health event.

I never even considered the need for immunizations before I came here. I've traveled in the Caribbean via cruises and a few week-long stays for the past 20+ years. I'd never heard of needing to get shots for Caribbean island visits and it never crossed my mind now that I'm here to stay for awhile.

I'm in very good health (no meds needed of any kind) and still not quite over the big 5-0 hill. I've gotten all of the normal shots through the years like Tetanus, but I've never gotten Hepatitis A and B, and Typhoid shots before.

Am I unusual? Is this something that I should get taken care of ASAP (here) or can it wait until I head back to Michigan for Christmas? Should I be concerned about this?

No Deb, there's no need to do anything either now or at Christmas. Malaria and Dengue are more uncommon here than in the states as we have fewer visitors and immigrants from malaria-risk areas. You can check the symptoms for both Malaria and Dengue online and if you ever develop symptoms, there are medicines that will take care of the problem.

Thanks for the info dntw8up. I was hoping to hear that.

(So Pink got poked unnecessarily? 🙂 )

Deb,

Pink said she got shots for Hepatitis A and B, Tetanus, and Typhoid. I don't know if they're unnecessary or not but most folks I know only bother with Tetanus, and that only every ten years. HepA can come from food contaminated by someone with HepA and HepB is primarily a STD.

Deb: When I moved here, there was some sort of data base that my doctor used to come up with needed vaccinations. I think because it was in the Caribbean they came up with all kinds of weird tropical diseases. The tetanus is an excellent idea- but it is for everyone! Also a flu shot in the fall. I have heard of malaria only in people returning from India. Dengue is a crap shoot. Typhoid? Hmm, they really think we are third world, huh?

The most dangerous diseases here are hypertension and diabetes.

Guess I should have been a little more specific with my answer. Sorry about that.

I already had my Hep A shots Many years ago and opted at the suggestion of my doctor to get the Hep. B's just to be safe! After the doctor explained that Hep. B could be contracted ANYWHERE, not just the VI's, I opted to get the shot! Why not?? Better safe than sorry right! I looked at it just like any other vaccine that we usually get as children. I did not get the typhoid shot.

I guess if shots bother you than you may not want to opt for any of these, but I'm a pretty tough cookie and shots don't bother me! LOL!!

Sorry for the any confusion I may have caused.....

Pink

Hey there everyone! I don't want to be corrective, but after years of working with a couple of sociopaths (yes, all the biting, scratching, etc. you could imagine), I had to learn a lot about the various Hep's out there. Hep B can be conveyed through saliva, blood, etc. There are preventive shots for it, but once done, you need to go periodically to make sure your titers are up to par. I don't know that there is any large amount of Hep B on the island, as I don't think there have been any major institutions (for example, and in older terms "for the Mentally Ill, for the Retarded, etc.). Please know that I would never use those terms, but that is how they were termed in their day. In any event, that many people living together was a breeding ground for Hep B.

Hep C is fairly new on the scene as a common disease, but unless you share needles with someone or have unprotected sex with strangers, you are not likely to get this. This one does not have a good outcome, and is not readily treated. It attacks the liver, and once the damage is done, it's done.

Just as an FYI: Most people diagnosed with Hep C. in the late 80's and 90's were told the prognosis was terminal. Anyone I knew is still alive today, so go figure. I would imagine the CDC has solid information on this.

Best wishes to all in not getting any of the above,

Dan

Here's the CDC's site with info about immunizations needed or suggested for the Caribbean:

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

After reading through this site along with your responses, I don't think I'll bother with any additional immunizations. My lifestyle doesn't justify getting shots for Hep A, B or C and I'll take my chances with Typhoid. I may get the flu shot this fall, depending on the availability of the vaccine, but then I've been doing that for years. I'll check with my doc to see when I'm due for my next Tetanus shot and get a booster if needed in December.

Thanks to all. This was a very interesting topic.

I had Dengue Fever 2 years ago June. I live on St. Croix. Within approximately a 4 week period, there were over 12 cases of Dengue on the North Shore of St. Croix. We all knew each other and were all sick at the same time. I was totally bedridden for 10 days, only getting out of bed to go to the bathroom or get a drink. Friends were stopping by daily with food (I was so weak I couldn't fix myself anything to eat-nor did I want to eat). I lost about 20 pounds (heck of a way to lose weight). And it took another 6 weeks for me to regain my strength and be back at 100%. My doctor told me there wasn't much he could do for me, just to go home and let it run it's course. It indeed felt like the worse case of the flu that I ever had. I am now a firm believer in using bug spray, even though "OFF" smells terrible and isn't good for you. I have just recently discovered that Lemon Grass Oil and incense are the best natural repellants for mosquitos. Avon Skin So Soft is also good for repelling the nasty mosquitos that carry dengue and malaria.

Tx Sissy: My aunt had Dengue Fever after a visit to STJ two years ago.

The doctors here in Massachusetts didn't know what was wrong with her until I sent my uncle an email about Dengue Fever and asked them to test her.

Many people were talking about it on these forums at the time and the symptons were spot-on so I asked them to test her for it. Sure enough, it was positive!

We also discovered the natural Lemon Grass oil repellant and I love it! Reminds me of Thai food!

Happy to hear you are healthy now. My aunt had it really bad for a couple weeks then a couple weeks of exhaustion but she's fine now.

hi everyone,

in the last week i've heard of 2 people getting dengue on st. croix. i'm sorry but don't know many details (where they live, etc). i've never been a huge fan of off or repel but am definitely using it in the evenings.