Current Travel Health Alerts

AUSTRALIA: Travellers import dengue, measles/ BENIN: Meningitis hits northwest/ BOLIVIA: Rise of rare disease/ BRAZIL: Dengue at 5-year high in Piracicaba/ CHINA: Hong Kong’s flu season drags on/ COLOMBIA: Neiva battles dengue, leishmaniasis

AUSTRALIA: Travellers import dengue, measles

There has been a second measles case in Brisbane. Both cases had contact with a person who caught the highly contagious disease in SE Asia. Read more.

Advice to travellers: Because dengue fever is transmitted by urban-breeding mosquitoes that mainly bite during daylight hours, it’s a risk for most travellers visiting cities and town in tropical countries. Take measures to avoid all insect bites; cover up when mosquitoes are biting, and apply repellent containing an active ingredient, such as DEET, Picaridin, IR3535, or oil of lemon eucalyptus when outdoors.

BENIN: Meningitis hits northwest

Meningococcal serogroup W135 is responsible for most of the 810 cases of meningitis reported across five north western districts – Kobli, Materi, Nikki, Perere and Tanguieta – this year. There have been 75 fatalities.

Advice to travellers: Meningococcal meningitis is an acute bacterial disease transmitted from person to person by coughing and sneezing. Benin lies in the sub-Saharan region of Africa known as the ‘Meningitis Belt’ and is subject to large epidemics during the dry season (December to June). Call Travelvax Australia’s free travel health advisory service on 1300 803 903 (toll-free for landlines) for more information on Meningitis and other vaccines that may be recommended or required for travel to this region.

BOLIVIA: Rise of rare disease

Machupo virus, a haemorrhagic fever transmitted by rodents, has killed five people and infected almost 100 others this year. The majority of cases have been in Mamoré and Iténez provinces (Beni Department).

Advice to travellers: Machupo virus presents an extremely low risk for travellers. It is spread by the vesper mouse, a rodent indigenous to northern Bolivia. Infected animals shed the virus in excreta, thereby infecting humans.

BRAZIL: Dengue at 5-year high in Piracicaba

Cuiaba (Mato Grosso State), Piracicaba (Sao Paulo State), and Salvador (Bahia State) reported dengue outbreaks this week. Piracicaba’s outbreak is its largest since 2007. Read more. (ProMED post, June 17).

CHINA: Hong Kong’s flu season drags on

Hong Kong has had an unusually long flu season. An average 1100 cases were reported each week from late May to the first week of June and doctors continue to see around 600 cases a week – 6 times the usual number. Most of the 170 flu-related deaths this year have been among the elderly. Read more.

Advice to travellers: Influenza is highly contagious. With the southern flu season underway, Australian travellers are at risk of infection during domestic or international travel. Consider having the current seasonal flu vaccine as part of your pre-travel vaccinations – ideally 10 days to 14 days before departure. Call Travelvax’s travel health advisory service toll-free (from landlines) on 1300 360 164 for advice and information.

COLOMBIA: Neiva battles dengue, leishmaniasis

Almost 20,000 official dengue cases have been recorded this year – around 1000 new cases each week. Among them have been 540 cases of more severe dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF), and at least 75 fatalities. The central southern city of Neiva is battling two insect-borne diseases – dengue fever (1800 cases, 5 deaths) and leishmaniasis (7 cases). From an average of 6500 cases per year in the 1990s, sand fly-borne leishmaniasis numbers have almost trebled today. Read more.

GHANA: Cholera hits Accra

The nation’s cholera toll stands at more than 4000 cases and 64 deaths, the majority in the capital, Accra (2756, 31). Outbreaks are occurring in the Brong Ahafo region, and the cities of Navrongo and Paga. Read more.

Advice to travellers: Australians travelling to regions where cholera outbreaks are occurring should adhere to strict personal hygiene guidelines and choose food and beverages with care. While the risk of infection is low for most short-stay travellers, Travelvax can advise on the risk for your journey and whether you should consider vaccination. Call Travelvax on 1300 360 164 to arrange an appointment 6-8 weeks before your departure.

HAITI: Cholera respite

Cholera case numbers fell dramatically to 528 last week after reaching a weekly peak of 1354 cases in late May. The disease has now killed more than 7200 Haitians and sickened 550,000. Despite the respite, the disease remains a major problem for local authorities and international aid groups. Read more.

INDIA: 250 AES deaths; Malaria rising in north; Dengue outbreaks; Cholera in Assam

Acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) is spreading in Bihar (159 deaths) and Uttar Pradesh (88), two of India's most populous states. At least 10 districts of Bihar are now affected by the mystery disease that killed more than 600 people last year, mainly among children. Read more.

MALARIA rates have risen sharply in Gujarat (Ahmedabad State) and Rajasthan (Jaisalmer), near the Pakistan border. Read more.

IN dengue news, Tamil Nadu State has recorded 2566 cases, including 36 deaths. As Bangalore (Karnataka state) braces for monsoon rains, the city is expecting its tally of 15 dengue cases and 3 deaths to rise sharply in coming weeks. Hassan city (Karnataka state) has had 11 recent cases of dengue. In southern Thiruvananthapuram city (Kerala State) rainy spells followed by hot days has seen dengue numbers spike, reaching new areas of the suburbs.

IN Assam State, there have been more than 500 cases of cholera, with Sivsagar, Darrang and Cachar districts the worst affected. Read more.

KERALA has recorded15 cases of scrub typhus in the Kozhikode, Kannur, Malappuram, Wayanad, and Palakkad districts. Read more.

Advice to travellers: Malaria is present year-round in rural and urban areas of India, including major cities. Travellers should discuss their itinerary and whether preventative malaria medication should be considered at their nearest Travelvax clinic, or with their healthcare provider. For advice, call Travelvax on 1300 803 903.

Scrub typhus is transmitted by bites from infected fleas, lice, mites, and ticks and mainly occurs during the summer months in northern Japan, Southeast Asia, the western Pacific Islands, eastern Australia, China, and parts of south-central Russia, India, and Sri Lanka. More than 1 million cases occur annually, according to America’s CDC. Most travel-acquired cases occur while camping, hiking, or rafting in rural areas of endemic countries. Read more on scrub typhus and other rickettsial infections.

IRAN: Tick disease in east

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) has infected 114 people and killed 14 in the last two years. CCHF kills around 1-in-10 and most of Iran’s cases are reported in the eastern provinces of Yazd, Fars, and Sistan-Baluchestan. Endemic in much of Africa, Europe, and Asia, the tick-borne viral disease mainly affects domestic and wild animals. Read more.

Advice to travellers: Rare outbreaks of CCHF present a low risk for travellers; however they highlight the need to take measures to avoid all biting insects. Ticks are the hosts for several potentially fatal diseases.

MAURITIUS: Locally-acquired malaria

Two cases of locally-acquired Plasmodium vivax malaria have been reported in Quatre Bornes, a town in the island nation’s north west. This outbreak is unusual because virtually all of Mauritius’ 40-50 annual cases are imported.

 PUERTO RICO: Dengue epidemic looms

The island is preparing to declare a dengue epidemic after 1836 suspected cases this year – 350 more than for the same period last year. Read more. (ProMED post, June 17)

JAMAICA: Dengue surfaces

A handful of cases have been recorded in four parishes, including Kingston and St. Andrew. Read more.

PHILIPPINES: Davao’s dengue overload

Dengue rates have risen almost 4% to 32,193 cases in the first five months of the year. Case numbers were highest in National Capital Region (7670), Central Luzon (5552), and Calabarzon (4508). Of the 195 fatalities, 43 were in the capital, Manilla. Read more.

Overwhelmed with dengue patients, hospitals in Davao City last week refused to admit patients from Davao del Sur. The city had had 96 cases and 12 deaths this year. Read more.

SINGAPORE: Fear of dengue surge

Dengue cases are at a three-year low this year, but authorities fear current high temperatures could bring a sudden spike in coming weeks. So far this year there have been 1529 cases, compared to 1742 in the same period last year and 1676 in 20120. Read more.

SRI LANKA: Dengue at pandemic level

Dengue has now entered a pandemic stage, authorities warn. The disease has killed 80 people and infected 14,500 others this year, overwhelming hospitals. Read more.

SUDAN: Cholera death in Bentiu

A young boy has died and 16 people admitted to hospital following an outbreak of cholera in the southern town of Bentiu (Rubkotna County, Unity State). Read more.

VIETNAM: Dengue grips Dong Nai

Dengue cases have exceeded 13,200 to the end of May, with 8 deaths. The disease struck suddenly across southern Dong Nai province, which has recorded 1800 cases and 1 death. Read more.