Vaccinations
Health Information for Travelers to Kenya
(copied from the CDC website)
Before visiting Kenya, you may need to get the following vaccinations and medications for vaccine-preventable diseases and other diseases you might be at risk for at your destination: (Note: Your doctor or health-care provider will determine what you will need, depending on factors such as your health and immunization history, areas of the country you will be visiting, and planned activities.)
To have the most benefit, see a health-care provider at least 4–6 weeks before your trip to allow time for your vaccines to take effect and to start taking medicine to prevent malaria, if you need it.
Even if you have less than 4 weeks before you leave, you should still see a health-care provider for needed vaccines, anti-malaria drugs and other medications and information about how to protect yourself from illness and injury while traveling.
CDC recommends that you see a health-care provider who specializes in Travel Medicine. Find a travel medicine clinic near you. If you have a medical condition, you should also share your travel plans with any doctors you are currently seeing for other medical reasons.
If your travel plans will take you to more than one country during a single trip, be sure to let your health-care provider know so that you can receive the appropriate vaccinations and information for all of your destinations. Long-term travelers, such as those who plan to work or study abroad, may also need additional vaccinations as required by their employer or school.
Be sure your routine vaccinations are up-to-date. Check the links below to see which vaccinations adults and children should get.
Routine vaccines, as they are often called, such as for influenza, chickenpox (or varicella), polio, measles/mumps/rubella (MMR), and diphtheria/pertussis/tetanus (DPT) are given at all stages of life; see the childhood and adolescent immunization schedule and routine adult immunization schedule.
Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
Vaccination or Disease |
Recommendations or Requirements for Vaccine-Preventable Diseases |
| Routine |
Recommended if you are not up-to-date with routine shots such as, measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus (DPT) vaccine, poliovirus vaccine, etc.
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| Yellow Fever |
CDC yellow fever vaccination recommendation for travelers to Kenya: For all travelers >9 months of age. The cities of Nairobi and Mombasa have lower risk of transmission than rural areas. Kenya requires travelers arriving from countries where yellow fever is present to present proof of yellow fever vaccination. Vaccination should be given 10 days before travel and at 10 year intervals if there is on-going risk. Find an authorized U.S. yellow fever vaccination clinic.
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| Hepatitis A or immune globulin (IG) |
Recommended for all unvaccinated people traveling to or working in countries with an intermediate or high level of hepatitis A virus infection (see map) where exposure might occur through food or water. Cases of travel-related hepatitis A can also occur in travelers to developing countries with "standard" tourist itineraries, accommodations, and food consumption behaviors. |
| Hepatitis B |
Recommended for all unvaccinated persons traveling to or working in countries with intermediate to high levels of endemic HBV transmission (see map), especially those who might be exposed to blood or body fluids, have sexual contact with the local population, or be exposed through medical treatment (e.g., for an accident).
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| Typhoid |
Recommended for all unvaccinated people traveling to or working in East Africa, especially if visiting smaller cities, villages, or rural areas and staying with friends or relatives where exposure might occur through food or water.
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| Meningococcal (meningitis) |
Recommended if you plan to visit countries that experience epidemics of meningococcal disease during December through June (see map).
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| Rabies |
Recommended for travelers spending a lot of time outdoors, especially in rural areas, involved in activities such as bicycling, camping, hiking, or work. Also, children are considered at higher risk because they tend to play with animals and may not report bites. Note: Rabies vaccine is temporarily in short supply. For updates on the rabies vaccine supply, please check the Rabies News and Highlights page regularly. (Updated June 18, 2008)
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| Polio |
Recommended for adult travelers who have received a primary series with either inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) or oral polio vaccine (OPV). They should receive another dose of IPV before departure. For adults, available data do not indicate the need for more than a single lifetime booster dose with IPV. |
Malaria
Drugs to Prevent Malaria (antimalarial drugs)
If you will be visiting a malaria risk area in Kenya, you will need to take one of the following antimalarial drugs: atovaquone/proguanil, doxycycline, or mefloquine (primaquine in special circumstances and only after G6PD testing).
Note: Chloroquine is NOT an effective antimalarial drug in Kenya and should not be taken to prevent malaria in this region.
Malaria risk area in Kenya: Risk in all areas (including game parks) at altitudes below 2,500 m (<8,202 ft). No risk in Nairobi.
A Special Note about Antimalarial Drugs
You should purchase your antimalarial drugs before travel. Drugs purchased overseas may not be manufactured according to United States standards and may not be effective. They also may be dangerous, contain counterfeit medications or contaminants, or be combinations of drugs that are not safe to use.
Halofantrine (marketed as Halfan) is widely used overseas to treat malaria. CDC recommends that you do NOT use halofantrine because of serious heart-related side effects, including deaths. You should avoid using antimalarial drugs that are not recommended unless you have been diagnosed with life-threatening malaria and no other options are immediately available.
For detailed information about these antimalarial drugs, see Information for the Public: Prescription Drugs for Malaria.
More Information About Malaria
Malaria is always a serious disease and may be a deadly illness. Humans get malaria from the bite of a mosquito infected with the parasite. Prevent this serious disease by seeing your health-care provider for a prescription antimalarial drug and by protecting yourself against mosquito bites.
Travelers to malaria risk-areas in Kenya, including infants, children, and former residents of Kenya, should take one of the following antimalarial drugs listed above.
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