Shots / immunizations

imported
#1

I am looking at hiking the AT this season and wonder if I need to have any immunizations. There are shots for lyme disease, west nile virus and rocky mt spotted fever.

Pika

#2

If nothing else I would get a Tetanus shot or make sure your Tetanus Booster is up to date. You should get a Tetanus Booster at least every ten years.

gardenville

#3

Other then your standard you-should-already-have-them-anyways shots, including tetanus (unless you are a conspiracy theorist and think immunizations are a way for the government to control you, in which case if you get sick I think those people should be left to die of their chosen refusal), not much. There was a series for Lyme’s Disease, but to my knowledge, it was discontinued, not for any danger of it, but simply due to lack of interest vs. cost to produce. RMSF isn’t too common that far east, and though West Nile is increasing, the absolute numbers are pretty low (as in, only a few dozen cases per the 280 million people in this country, and mostly those already immunocomprimised such as the elderly, infirmed, etc).

Enjoy your hike, you will probably be in the best health of your life, both physically and mentally, and spiritually, during it.

-xtn :boy :cheers

airferret

#4

Slightly more cases then I said, but still pretty low incidence. URL below to CDC, 2004 stats for WNV

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/surv&controlCaseCount04_detailed.htm

airferret

#5

Airferret,your right about disappointing sales on the lymerix vaccine.The company uses this as the reason it was pulled, but there is another side to this story. The vaccine is implicated in cases of systemic arthritis-like symptoms in people who had no previous contact with the disease. They have found a genetic marker in 30% of the population that may react with the vaccine.I have treated two people in the past, in physical therapy, neither of which had lymes disease prior to getting the vaccine. Understand, the vaccine did not give them lymes,but their symptoms were similar to many reported ones. I understand there is a class action suit with the maker. I am not current with info about where this stands.Perhaps it was convenient sales were off expectations or else we may be looking at more cases. Interesting subject that could be researched on the web. Oo

Onlyone