Getting sick while on a trip

Yes, if you travel out of US, Canada, Western and Central Europe this "Montezuma Revenge" happens more often than you think. It happened to me in Romania, Soviet Georgia, Bulgaria, Nepal but surprisingly not in Mexico, China, Thailand. Lately going to exotic countries I carry Immodium and Ciprofloxacin just in case.

That's an interesting article, especially as it was written from his personal experience with various travel illnesses. I agree that many of these illnesses tend to occur in more out-of-the-way locations rather than Europe. However, as the author's experience shows, even somewhat developed countries like Russia can have problems at times. I was once told by an experienced traveller not to drink the tap water in St. Petersburg.

Unfortunately those travelling to tropical locations don't always do their homework. There was an example of that about a year ago with a young couple who were honeymooning in Costa Rica, and decided to take an excursion into the jungle. One of them became very sick after returning home and he was diagnosed with one of the forms of Leishmaniasis. There was another more recent example of a young lady from this area who was travelling in West Africa. She had obtained anti-malarial med's prior to her trip, but didn't take them and of course she contracted malaria (an especially severe form). That one was featured on a reality medical show that's produced here, and it was interesting to see how they treated that (I can provide a video link if you're interested). Now we have a few new ailments to deal with such as Zika Virus and Chickungunya.

Although Europe is generally "safe", I always visit the Travel Medicine Clinic prior to each trip just to make sure everything is up-to-date, especially routine vaccinations like Tetanus/Diptheria, etc. I've had the Hep. A / B vaccines a couple of times, since they were required for work. The clinic usually recommends a Dukoral booster and writes a prescription for Cipro.

The water in St. Petersburg, Russia: Yes, indeed. I was a victim of giardiasis after a visit there long ago, and a quick trip through Google indicates that the parasite lives on in the city water supply. There's a long gestation period, so you're likely to be home before the (digestive) symptoms set in, and it's not something US doctors necessarily have much experience diagnosing. I wouldn't call my symptoms "severe", but they lasted about 2 weeks. Giardiasis is often said to be not serious in otherwise-healthy adults, but I've read that it can be serious in the elderly and those with compromised immunity.

As for other medical problems, over the course of 12 European trips (4-1/2 months, 3 months, 2 months, and the rest 1 month) I've had 5 illnesses, and I suspect that length of trip is a risk factor, because all the issues I've had occurred during the 3 long trips--whether simply because I was away longer or because I was a little more tired, I do not know. I think suffering through one stubborn cold and four gastro-intestinal illnesses (including the giardia) over the course of about 18 months isn't too bad, though I'm rarely ill at home. Two of the gastro episodes were apparently food- or water-borne; the other two seemed to be just 24- or 48-hour viruses, probably noro-viruses. Those are everywhere; the last time I had one of those, I was in San Jose, California.

Thanks Sam , an interesting article , certainly brings to mind a few of my own experiences . Ken , your comment -" Russia can have problems at times. I was once told by an experienced traveler not to drink the tap water in St. Petersburg " Was that experienced traveler Ed , by any chance ? I recall him saying that in a post a year or two ago , and took his remarks to heart . To acraven - have a look here on the Russia thread , the subject of Giardia also came up here . Look at the comments by " janettravels44 " https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/russia/2015-st-petersburg-russia-travelers-with-experience-please

Thank you, Steven. That was very interesting. I'm always glad to see giardia mentioned when St. Petersburg is under discussion. My trip was in 1972 (obviously pre-internet), and though I was a well-read traveler, I had never even heard of giardia at that time.

steven,

I believe the advice I was referring to came from one of my former colleagues, however I do recall that Ed also mentioned that.

I forgot about Giardia (aka "Beaver Fever") but that's also something that can be contracted in North America. I believe there are some forms of that which can be more serious. Some of the victims in this story may have been affected by Giardia.....

http://globalnews.ca/news/2170209/sunwing-offers-compensation-to-canadian-travellers-after-outbreak-at-cuban-resort/

If I ever decide to travel in Cuba, I'll pay a visit to the local MEC outdoor store and buy some appropriate "just-in-case" water treatment tablets.

A co-worker who had to travel to Russia in the 1980s (post USSR) carried his own supply of hypodermic needles and syringes and first aid supplies. The Russian's did not use disposables. He would have taken blood supplies as well but he didn't have the Queen's entourage and support system.

USSR collapsed in 1991 so in the 1980s it was still USSR.

Yes it was indeed. I visited Moscow and Leningrad in late August/early September 1983. It was a short trip, but we only used purified water supplied by the tourist hotels where we stayed, and only drank bottled beverages or ones made with boiled water. The water came out of the tap tinted brown, but that's all we had for bathing. We did get some ice cream from a cart in Moscow, but didn't get sick from it or anything else.

Sidebar: It was a German tour, but there were several of us DOD employees on it. When we arrived back in Frankfurt, they parked the Aeroflot plane out on the tarmac and surrounded it with armed guards. We were bused over to the gate. We didn't know what was going on until we got inside and learned that a Soviet military pilot had shot down KAL 007 while we were there.

I got a respiratory illness for a few days in Japan. After 3 days or so, it resolved completely, which is very unusual for me, as my colds hang on for days and days with a cough that lasts for 2 months afterwards. What came next was 2 days of horrible stomach cramps and diarrhea. Being a nurse, of course I researched med journals and became convinced I had Cocksackie B virus. Now I know I probably just had traveler's diarrhea.

On a bright note, if you're going to be stuck on the toilet for 2 days, you can't pick a better place than Japan, what with the musical toilets and all.

Ilja,

You're right about USSR date. Time dulls the memory. I would be interested in knowing if Russian medical care for the masses and visiting tourist has substantially improved from the early post-USSR days.

Fortunately I don't know from my own experience but from what I heard in Moscow and St.Petersburg you could go to the American clinics which are on western level. Health care for ordinary people did not improve much. When I visited Uglich, Yaroslavl, Kostroma, Nizhny Novgorod, Cheboksary, Kazan, Samara, Saratov, Volgograd, Astrakhan I tried not to think about it too much.

Emily, I could happily live full-time in the bathroom I had in my Tokyo hotel. :)

I had a flu when I was in Japan, and I carried on by dosing myself up with Ibuprofen every day and soaking in the marvellous tub every night. However, I ran out of my supply and had to buy it locally. I think the types available there are not as strong. Also, the always-on hot water kettle we had in our room was wonderful.

In Barcelona, my husband and I had what we think was food poisoning (likely contracted in Madrid, as my husband started showing symptoms the day before we left for Barcelona). Unfortunately, we were staying in a place that did not have a lot of bathroom privacy (just a half-wall screening the toilet/shower area from the rest of the apartment). But we soldiered on.

Taking Dukoral beforehand can help prevent some problems, but not all. We took Dukoral before our trip to Hong Kong and Tokyo, but it didn't prevent me from catching the flu, of course--and I'd had a flu shot that year. We didn't take it before our trip to Portugal, Spain, and France, and I was wishing we had.

Since not everything can be avoided or prevented, try to bring some Ibuprofen or Tylenol from home, as the stronger doses may not be available in some countries, and it can be difficult to read instructions on the packages, too. Also, some travel clinics will give you a prescription for antibiotics to take with you just in case.

BB,

"Taking Dukoral beforehand can help prevent some problems, but not all."

To expand on that point, Dukoral is intended to provide some preventive effects against bacteria such as E-coli. However, it won't protect against viruses or parasites, nor does it treat infections once they occur. Given the limitations, I was told that it only provides protection for some, perhaps 60-70%. When I asked the Doc at the Travel Medicine Clinic whether it was recommended, he said, "would you rather be in the group that has some protection, or the group that has absolutely no protection". I always get the Booster before I travel every year. I also pack along some Cipro for "just in case" scenarios.

Agreed, Ken. :)