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Higher Risk of Pneumonia Among Those With Celiac Disease

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Pneumonia poses an increased risk to those with the gluten disease.

Doctors recommended seniors receive the pneumococcal vaccination for some years. It is not routinely given to those under the age of 65 unless a person is at an increased risk for the disease. But, new research suggests the vaccine is a healthy choice for those at any age with celiac disease.

What Is Celiac Disease?

Those with celiac disease have a hypersensitivity to gluten. This can lead to damage in their small intestine. When people with celiac eat gluten, their body triggers an immune response. The body begins attacking the small intestine, classifying the disease as an autoimmune disorder. This disease is hereditary, and can be difficult to diagnose.

The only treatment for those with celiac disease is a lifelong, strict gluten-free diet.

Why Vaccinate Against Pneumonia If I Have Celiac Disease?

Doctors in the United Kingdom researched the link between pneumonia and celiac disease. In a more than 100,000 person study, they found compelling results.

Participants with celiac disease were at a higher risk of contracting pneumonia, 28 percent more likely to fall ill. This risk appears to be the highest near the time of celiac diagnosis.

The increased risk was only in patients under the age of 65. The CDC recommends pneumonia vaccination at this age.

Why Are People with Celiac More Susceptible to Pneumonia?

There is some evidence that those with celiac disease may have a weakened spleen. The spleen is vital to the body for fighting off infections. So, celiac disease patients may be more susceptible to certain illnesses, such as pneumonia.

Thinking of Getting Your Pneumonia Vaccination?

If you have not received a pneumonia vaccine, you may need one. Especially if you have celiac disease.

Pneumonia is an infection of the lungs in which the air sacs of one or both lungs become inflamed. It is a common sickness, with more than 3 million cases a year. It can become a life-threatening infection to infants, children, and those over the age of 65. The pneumonia vaccine is the best form of protection against the disease.

The PCV13 is a pneumococcal vaccination that protects against 13 types of pneumococcal bacteria. The PPSV23 pneumonia vaccine protects against 23 different types of pneumococcal bacteria. You can review an adult immunization schedule recommended by the CDC to learn more if you have not yet been vaccinated.

Passport Health offers the pneumonia vaccine at all our clinics across North America. If you are uncertain of your vaccination history, you can get a titer test to learn if you are immune. Your local Passport Health clinic can help both items. Book your appointment today by calling or schedule online now.

Have you ever had pneumonia and/or are you diagnosed with celiac disease? Leave your comments below, on Facebook, or via Twitter.

Travelers, Get These Vaccinations for Vietnam!

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Vietnam is an amazing travel destination, just make sure you are prepared before you go.

Vietnam is known for its exotic beaches and rivers, its incredible architecture in its bustling cities, and its wide variety of delicious cuisine. It is one of the most beautiful countries of Southeast Asia. Vietnam is a dream travel destination for those seeking adventure.

It is important to stay health-conscious while traveling to foreign countries. Food- and mosquito-borne illnesses are common health risks while visiting Vietnam. Make sure you take proper precautions before you take off to stay healthy, safe, and to ensure the best trip.

Which Vaccinations Do I Need for Vietnam?

It is highly recommended you to visit a travel health specialist at least four weeks before leaving. Since vaccines for Vietnam can vary based on your itinerary, a Passport Health travel specialist can help you decide which vaccines are necessary.

All travelers, no matter their destination, should be up-to-date on their routine vaccines. These vaccines include measles-mumps-rubella, varicella (chickenpox), your yearly flu shot, and more.

The CDC recommends the following vaccines when traveling to Vietnam:

Based on where you are visiting in Vietnam, how long you will be staying, and what you will be doing, you may need the following vaccines:

Is Zika in Vietnam?

Zika is currently an epidemic in Vietnam. The CDC suggests that the risk to most travelers is low.

But, there is a high risk of birth defects in babies who are born to women who were infected with the Zika virus while pregnant. Women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should discuss their travel itinerary with their doctor.

Other Health Concerns to Be Aware Of

While vaccines can protect you from some common sicknesses in Vietnam, they do not protect you from all. It is important to be careful of your behaviors to stay healthy and safe.

  • Eat and Drink Safely– Only eat food that is cooked and served hot. Only eat fruits and vegetables that you have rinsed in purified water or peeled yourself. Don’t eat food from street vendors, food at room temperature, or undercooked eggs, meat, or fish. Only drink sealed, bottled water. Other safe drinks include carbonated drinks, hot coffee or tea, or pasteurized milk.

  • Prevent Bug Bites– Many diseases that cannot be prevented in Vietnam can be spread by bugs; such as mosquitoes, ticks, and fleas. To prevent bug bites, you should use insect repellent. Cover any exposed skin by wearing long-sleeved shirts, long pants, boots, and hats. You should stay and sleep in air-conditioned or screened rooms, and use a bed net if where you’re sleeping is exposed to the outdoors.

  • Reduce Exposure to Germs– Be sure to wash your hands with soap often, especially before eating. Clean your hands with hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if no soap or water is available. Do not touch your eyes, nose, or mouth unless your hands are clean. And, of course, cover your coughs or sneezes and avoid contact with people who are ill.

  • Know How to Get Medical Care– It is important to know where to go if you start to feel sick while traveling. A smart traveler will keep a list of the local doctors and hospitals at their destination. You should also review your health insurance plan to make sure of what medical services it can cover during your stay.

Tips for a Perfect Trip to Vietnam

There are countless places to visit while in Vietnam. You will most likely be on the move to various points of interest. You may want to keep these popular destinations and tips in mind during your travels.

A majority of tourists begin their trip in the capitol of Vietnam, Hanoi. This city is particularly interesting because of its great architecture, featuring ancient buildings and new constructions. The city is over 1,000 years old and still bustling with life today.

If you love to be near the water, make sure you plan a visit to the Halong Bay. With its emerald waters and towering islands containing rainforests, it creates an exotic atmosphere. You can enjoy boat journeys, quirky bars, and a relaxed way of life at this destination.

While traveling from place to place in Vietnam, it is important to be aware of taxi scams. It is best to have a decent knowledge of where you’re traveling to. If you feel your driver is going the wrong way, just tell them to pull over and wave down a different ride. You can also order a hotel pick-up from the airport to avoid paying extra in a taxi scam for your first ride.

Planning a Trip to Vietnam? Make an Appointment with a Travel Health Specialist Today!

At Passport Health, you can schedule a travel health consultation with a specialist to help ensure you have the best possible experience during your trip. To schedule an appointment for your upcoming trip call or book online now.

Have you ever been to Vietnam? Share your experience in a comment below, on Facebook, or via Twitter.

Lassa Fever, Ebola’s Lesser-Known Cousin

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Lassa fever is most commonly spread by this mouse and contact with infected specimens.

In this world full of wanderlust, with all the planes, trains, and automobiles, we can travel to remote islands and the deepest jungles or the most crowded and impressive cities. Covering these distances is something early explorers couldn’t even dream of. Still, like those early explorers, we need to prepared for possible diseases in unfamiliar territory. A rare and unfamiliar disease for many today is Lassa Fever.

Background of Lassa Fever

Lassa Fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness. This general term is used to describe a severe illness associated with bleeding. The virus causing Lassa Fever was affecting individuals as early as the 1950’s. But, the virus wasn’t documented until 1969. The first cases occurred when two missionary nurses died in a little town in Nigeria known as Lassa.

Where could I get Lassa Fever?

Since those first cases in Nigeria, Lassa has been found in other West African countries. Lassa Fever was most recently found in Benin, with the first case diagnosed there in 2014.

According to the World Health Organization, Lassa Fever is endemic in:

  • Nigeria
  • Benin
  • Ghana
  • Guinea
  • Liberia
  • Mali
  • Sierra Leone

It is likely to exist in other West African countries as well.

How could I contract Lassa Fever?

Lassa Fever is not common. It is transmitted through exposure to the urine or feces of the common African rat or through direct contact with bodily fluids of another infected human. Those at greatest risk are those in communities where multimammate rats are commonly found. Risk increases even more in areas where healthcare and sanitation are poor or living conditions are crowded. Healthcare workers also have a higher risk of catching Lassa Fever, as they may come in contact with bodily fluids. There is no evidence to support the possibility of airborne contamination.

What does Lassa Fever look like?

The virus for Lassa Fever has an incubation period of about 1-3 weeks. When symptoms do appear, they are mild and go undiagnosed for a majority – about 80% – of cases. According to the Centers for Disease Control–

Mild Lassa Fever Symptoms can include:

  • Fever
  • General malaise and weakness
  • Headache
  • Sore throat
  • Nausea
  • Cough

The other 20% of cases see a more severe set of symptoms that could be fatal.

Severe Lassa Fever Symptoms:

  • Facial swelling
  • Hemorrhaging (eyes, gums, nose, etc.)
  • Repeated vomiting
  • Fluid in the lungs
  • Neurological problems, like hearing loss

In fatal cases, death occurs within 14 days of onset due to multiple organ failure. Lassa Fever does not have a high mortality rate. Only 1% of all Lassa Fever infections result in death.

Deafness is the most common complication of Lassa Fever, and can occur in both mild and severe cases. In fact, varying degrees of hearing loss occur in as many as one-third of Lassa Fever cases.

Lassa Fever symptoms vary, making diagnosis tricky in the early stages. Lassa Fever is also hard to distinguish from related viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola virus. Other diseases like malaria also have similar symptoms.

What is the treatment for Lassa Fever?

The antiviral drug Ribavirin has been used to treat Lassa Fever patients, though it is most effective in early stages. It should be given in conjunction with supportive care like fluid and electrolyte balance maintenance, oxygenation and blood pressure, and treatment of other infections.

How can I avoid getting Lassa Fever when traveling to West Africa?

Unfortunately, there is no vaccine currently available for Lassa Fever. But, understanding viral transmission will help you in taking extra precautions. For example, try to avoid places with poor sanitation and crowded living conditions. And of course, be careful to make sure food has not been exposed to rodents.

If you are traveling to West Africa as a healthcare professional to donate your time and service, make sure to take extra precautions. Protect yourself against illnesses like Lassa Fever so that you can stay healthy while being such a great help!

Going to West Africa anytime soon? Learn more about the vaccinations needed for your own upcoming trip by scheduling an appointment with your local Passport Health Travel Medicine Specialist. Book now by calling or schedule online today.

Are you familiar with Lassa Fever or another lesser known disease? Do you have any advice for traveling to West Africa? Feel free to leave a comment below or contact us on Facebook or via Twitter.

Written for Passport Health by Adrienne St. Clair

How Cows Helped Jump Start Vaccines

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Edward Jenner's research saved millions of lives and paved the way for future vaccines.

Today, few question the legitimacy of a vaccination. Even fewer people consider a time when vaccinations were completely nonexistent. It is bizarre to think we owe our thanks to a cow, a dairymaid, an eight-year old boy, and the doctor who made a connection between them all.

People refer to Dr. Edward Jenner as “the father of immunology”. Immunization was not new, but Jenner was the first to study and document vaccination use. His curious experiment has saved an innumerable amount of human lives.

Smallpox was the greatest killer of Jenner’s time. In its most common form, the virus killed about 30% of those who caught it. It was the most feared disease that reached every part of society – even royalty suffered from it.

Smallpox is a virus that causes flu-like symptoms later accompanied by raised pink spots that grow over time. The spots cover the entire body. If the victim recovers, the blisters will shrivel up and fall off. They often leave behind sunken scars.

A similar but far less deadly disease than smallpox, is cowpox. This virus, which originates from cows, can transfer from animals to humans. It wasn’t uncommon for dairymaids to experience the mild infection. They would feel run down for a couple of days and develop some pocks, usually on their hands. Other than this, the sickness was harmless and did not cause any concern.

At the young age of thirteen, Jenner was an apprentice to a country surgeon. During his apprenticeship he overheard a dairymaid working nearby say, “I shall never have smallpox for I have had cowpox. I shall never have an ugly pockmarked face.”

Jenner took note of dairymaids’ natural immunity to smallpox. Many believed that those who had contracted cowpox were immune to smallpox.

Years later in 1796, a dairymaid consulted Jenner about a rash on her hand. Seeing the mildness of the infection, he diagnosed her with cowpox. She later verified to him that one of the cows she was working with recently had cowpox. Jenner saw this as his golden opportunity to prove the disease’s protection from smallpox.

To test his hypothesis, Jenner needed someone who never contracted cowpox or smallpox before. His gardener’s eight-year old son served as a perfect candidate. Jenner collected drops of fluid from the sores on the dairymaid’s hands and injected a small amount into the healthy boy’s arm. The boy became mildly ill with the cowpox infection, but recovered about a week later.

Two months later, Jenner injected some fluid from a smallpox sore into the young boy. As Jenner expected, the boy never became sick. To confirm his findings, Jenner continued to test the boy’s immunity. Hi various experiments all proved his hypothesis correct.

Jenner soon coined the word “vaccination”, of which the root word is derived from the Latin word “vacca”, meaning cow. Jenner published his research and discoveries, excited to share his success with the world.

Despite the success of Jenner’s techniques and findings, he faced opposition from others in the medical field. One criticizism was that cowpox wasn’t common. It was usually found in rural areas with farms having cows and dairymaids. This meant many doctors would have to get the vaccine from Jenner.

Edward Jenner continued to attempt to win approval as well as spread his new vaccine to the world. He came up with new, easy ways to have the cowpox matter widely transported. He was successful in his commitment to his scientific discovery.

Jenner’s work helped eradicate smallpox. Samples of the virus only exists in two labs permitted and trusted to secure it.

Jenner himself laid the foundation of vaccination as we know it today.

To learn more about the various vaccines that have been made since Jenner’s development, see our main vaccinations page.

Passport Health specializes in travel medicine, to schedule an appointment for your upcoming trip call or book online now.

How do you feel about Dr. Edward Jenner’s experiments? If you were living during his time, would you agree with his testing on an eight-year old boy? Leave your comments below, on Facebook, or via Twitter.

You May Not Be Immune Forever- Why Boosters Are Important!

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Vaccine boosters are super important for travelers and everyone.

Have you thought about becoming infected with an illness that you were vaccinated against? Few people do. Many vaccines only need a single shot, but not all of them. Booster shots are key in preventing the return or contraction of certain diseases. But, some individuals overlook their importance in sustaining disease immunity.

Why Do I Need A Booster Vaccine?

In the 1950’s, a diphtheria epidemic in Russia caused more than 750,000 cases. The majority of cases were in children. But, it wasn’t until 1958 that universal childhood immunization began. As a result, diphtheria cases decreased dramatically by 1963.

In the later years, a childhood vaccination schedule had to be completed for school entry. Case reports fell, and there was hope for elimination. But, diphtheria made an explosive comeback in Russia thirty years later.

In 1993, a major outbreak occurred. Except this time, the majority of cases were in adults.

“Most experts attribute the increase in diphtheria to failings in the Russian immunization program,” said Celestine Bohlen, in a New York Times article published during this second epidemic outbreak. “[This] allow[ed] a high number of infants to be turned down for the normal schedule of inoculations for medical reasons, while not keeping many adults, particularly those from age 20 to 50, up to date on their immunizations.”

This second diphtheria outbreak was different. Most cases were in adults. Thirty years earlier, the majority of cases were pediatric. A connection between the lack of booster vaccines and this outbreak was clear.

A booster vaccine could have prevented the second diphtheria outbreak. It is important to stay up to date on booster vaccines to avoid incidences such as this.

Why Do Some Infections Require Booster Vaccines?

One can never be sure that a sickness won’t re-emerge and put them at risk. It is necessary to know whether a vaccine from a certain disease requires a booster later on.

Booster need depends on a variety of factors including disease progression and immunological memory.

Immunological memory refers to the ability of the immune system to respond to a detected pathogen. The faster the immune system can recognize a pathogen and prevent a sickness, the better. Whether it is necessary to boost immune memory with a follow-up shot depends on the disease’s speed of progression.

If enough time has passed since the vaccination, and the disease can progress rapidly. It may even spread faster than the body can respond. In cases involving slow-moving infections, the immune memory is activated with plenty of time to respond. In these instances, a booster vaccine is not necessary to maintain immunity.

“Pediatricians and family doctors must begin to anticipate the need to provide booster vaccinations for several of the newer vaccines introduced in the recent years,” said Michael Pichichero, with the Rochester General Research Institute, who has studied booster vaccines in various states.

No one wants to get infected with an illness they thought they were immune to. Sometimes, it can be hard to remember. Long period of time can pass without needing a booster – the tetanus booster is only needed every ten years.

What Vaccines Require Boosters?

Other vaccines may need a booster more often, such as the annual dose for the flu.

Travel Vaccinations that Require Boosters:

Routine Vaccinations that Require Boosters:

It is not only important to check if you will need a booster vaccine, but also to remember when it will be needed. You can check the adult vaccination schedule recommended by the CDC.

To learn more about these immunization or titer testing, see our vaccinations and titer testing portals.

If you are unsure of your vaccination history, consider titer testing to learn if you are immune. Your local Passport Health clinic can help, book your appointment today by calling or schedule online now.

Have you ever been infected with an illness you thought you were immune to? Share your thoughts on booster vaccines and their importance to your health in our comments section below, on Twitter or via Facebook.

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