Immunizations for the Amazon
 

I will be traveling to Brazil in October and spending a few days in the Amazon on a tour. Our local health department recommended that I get a Hep A vacination and a yellow fever vacination, aprox $120. How necessary is this on a tour?

Both are recommended by CDC.
Check www.cdc.gov. follow the destination links to tropical South America.
They also recommend malaria prophlaxis.
HepA is given in two doses 6 months apart, but the first is about 98% effective. The single dose yellow fever is virtually 100% effective for 10 years. Many internists recommend HepB as well.
Don't forget Ultrathon insect repellent.
M
PS $120. for both is pretty reasonable

I personally think everyone should be vaccinated against Hepatitis A, several people died from it in Pennsylvania in the past year. Several states now require it for all children.

If you're heading into the Amazon, I'd play it safe and get the yellow fever vaccine. The mosquitos are there, and apparently some must carry yellow fever, or it wouldn't be recommended. Yellow fever vaccine does have some flu like side effects, so make sure and get it far enough ahead that you aren't feeling crummy when you start your trip.

Jean

I have just returned from a month in Brazil and we visited an amazon Lodge. We were advised to have all the vaccinations, which we did, but at this time of the year we did not see any mossies. We wondered why we had the vaccinations but would certainly do so again. You can never be sure. It also depends on which river you will be visiting. Enjoy - it was wonderful and I am looking at photas right now and wish I was back.

There are a few things to consider when deciding whether or not to get the yellow fever vacination and/or taking the malaria pills when traveling to the Amazon. Most of the lodges are on the Rio Negro which has a very acidic PH. This makes it difficult for mosquitos to reproduce on the Rio Negro. So in general the area does not have a problem with either yellow fever or malaria. For example: Ariau Amazon Towers has never had 1 case of malaria or yellow fever since opening in the mid 80s.

However, if you plan on doing bass fishing or going to an area on the Rio Solimoes or the main part of the Amazon River, then you may want to get the shots and take the pills.

best regards - jill

We visited Brazil in early December 2003. We had our Hep shots here before we left but not our yellow fever. When we arrived at the Brazil border from Guyana, we were not allowed entry until their nurse administered the yellow fever shots(at no charge). Luckily, we were travelling with someone who spoke excellent Portugese or we would have found the whole process extremely. Had we known the shots were mandatory, we would have made sure we had the shots here (in Canada) before we left.

Apparently, if we had flown in, the shots would not have been mandatory but because we drove it was mandatory.

Ooops...meant to say "extrmely confusing".