Unaware American travelers risk bringing home tropical diseases

Unaware American travelers risk bringing home tropical diseases

As much as 46 percent of the 30 million American travelers who went to poor countries every year did not seek some form of advice regarding health risks, according to a new survey.

About 1,200 travelers who left overseas through the Boston Logan International Airport participated in the study, which was published in the Journal of Travel Medicine in its November-December issue.

The study was conducted jointly by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Port Authority, and the Boston Public Health Commission.

The low-rate for health-seeking behavior among travelers may be improved further by new strategies of informing travelers about risks such as dengue, hepatitis and malaria, which are common in tropical countries - some of the world’s most favorite travel destinations.

“International travel is the primary way many infections traverse the world,” study author Dr. Edward Ryan, who is also director of the Tropical and Geographic Medicine Center at the Massachusetts General Hospital said in a statement. “What many people don’t realize is that, without seeking the correct health information, they are putting themselves at increased risk of infection, as well as creating a public health risk in their home communities after they return.”

The researchers suggested using the Internet and encouraging primary care physicians to intensify the information drive about the potential health risks faced by travelers.

“Offering online resources at the time of ticket purchase or through popular travel Web sites would likely reach a large audience of people in need of health advice,” Dr. Regina C. LaRocque, the lead researcher, said in a news release.

Posted by Sophia Andrews on Sunday November 07 2010, 9:24 AM EST. Ref: Business Week. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Travel. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0