Many travel illnesses can be prevented with vaccinations and a little caution.
Many travel illnesses can be prevented with vaccinations and a little caution.
The following vaccines are the common immunizations recommended for adult travelers.
| VACCINE | TRADE NAME | AGE | Regions Where the Vaccine is Recommended | ROUTE | SCHEDULE | HOW DISEASE SPREADS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| COVID 19 Vaccines |
Pfizer/BioNTech |
> 5 y | All countries | IM or SC | varies | Airborne & Direct Contact |
| Hepatitis A vaccine, inactivated | Havrix (GlaxoSmithKline) and Vaqta (Merck & Co., Inc.) | ≥19 y | All low- and middle-income countries | IM | 2 doses; 0 and 6–12 mo to 18 mo for Vaqta | Contaminated Food or Wate |
| Hepatitis B vaccine | Engerix-B (GlaxoSmithKline) and Recombivax HB (Merck & Co., Inc.) | ≥20 y | All low- and middle-income countries (hepatitis B is particularly common in China) | IM | 3 doses 0, 1, 6 mo | Contaminated Body Fluids (Sex, needles, etc.) |
| Japanese encepha litis vaccine | Ixiaro (Valneva) | 18–65 y | Rural areas throughout most of Asia and South Asia, particularly in areas with rice and pig farming | IM | 0, 7–28 d | Mosquito-borne |
| >65 y | IM | 0, 28 d | ||||
| Meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine (MenACWY-D) | Menactra (Sanofi Pasteur) and Menveo (GSK) |
2–55 years | Northern Sub-Saharan Africa from Mali to Ethiopia (the meningitis belt)Throughout the world, especially in crowded living situations (such as dormitories) | IM | single dose | Airborne or Direct Contact |
| Polio vaccine, inactivated | Ipol (Sanofi Pasteur) | ≥18 y | Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only polio-endemic countries in the world .Several countries have additional precautionary polio vaccination travel requirements, includimg China, Indonesia, Mozambique, Myanmar, and Papua New Guinea. |
SC or IM | 1 dose if patient has completed a pediatric series | Contaminated Food or Wate |
| Rabies vaccine (human diploid cell) | Imovax (Sanofi Pasteur) and RabAvert (Novartis) | Any | All countries | IM | Preexposure series: days 0, 7, and 21 or 28 d | Infected Animals |
| Typhoid vaccine (oral, live, attenuated) | Vivotif (PaxVax) | ≥6 y | All low-income countries, especially in South Asia (including India) | Oral | 0, 2, 4, 6 d | Contaminated Food or Water |
| Typhoid vaccine (Vi capsular polysaccharide) | Typhim Vi (Sanofi Pasteur) | ≥2 y | All low-income countries, especially in South Asia (including India) | IM | 1 dose | |
| Yellow fever | YF-Vax (Sanofi Pasteur) | ≥9 mo9 | Tropical South America and tropical Africa | SC | 1 dose | Mosquito-borne |
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