By Patricia Ribeiro
Brazil Travel Expert, about.com
Yellow fever is a viral hemorrhagic fever borne by infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Patients can be affected by jaundice, hence the name of the disease. Yellow fever can be prevented by an effective vaccine that must be taken at least 10 days before entering an endemic area and lasts for 10 years.
[post_ads_2]
Brazil is a country with endemic areas, that is,
areas where there is a risk of yellow fever infection. In the summer of
2007/2008, the country had a yellow fever outbreak. According to Centro de Informação em Saúde para Viajantes (Cives),
the travelers' health information center at Universidade Federal do Rio
de Janeiro, the Brazilian Ministry of Health reported 31 confirmed
cases of yellow fever between December 2007 and February 2008. Sixteen
people died. Evidence pointed to infection in rural areas of the
Central-West region.
As the Brazilian Ministry of Health reported
to the World Health Organization, none of the people who died in the
2007/2008 outbreak were immunized against yellow fever - either they had
never taken the vaccine, or had taken it longer than 10 years before
infection occurred.
Yellow Fever Prevention Guidelines:
As of the time of this writing, Brazil's yellow fever vaccination guidelines for travelers are: recommended for risk areas; not required from incoming travelers. Read more about yellow fever and malaria vaccination for travelers in Brazil from CDC, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Transmission Patterns in Brazil
There are three yellow fever transmission patterns:
sylvatic, urban and intermediate. There isn't intermediate trasmission
in South America. The cases reported in Brazil configure sylvatic
transmission, that is, non-immunized people were infected in rural areas
by mosquitoes that had bitten infected monkeys.
In Brazil, urban transmission - infection carried by Aedes aegypti from one person to another - has been considered eradicated since the 1940s. However, since the reintroduction of Aedes aegypti in the country in the 1970s, there has bee a permanent risk of a yellow fever comeback, according to Cives.
Can Everyone Take the Yellow Fever Vaccine?
No.
Infants under 9 months of age can't. Many other people shouldn't.
Restrictions may be applicable to people with conditions that lower
immunity, for example. Only a doctor can help vaccine candidates weigh
risks and benefits. Read more about yellow fever on the CDC website.
Other Preventive Measures
Aedes aegypti
transmits another tropical disease: dengue fever. Brazil has been
engaged in a countrywide campaign to eliminate mosquito breeding sites
for years.
Unfortunately, there is no vaccine available for dengue
fever. Preventive measures must be adopted when you travel to tropical
areas, including Brazil. These measures also apply to preventing yellow
fever infection, but they can't compare to the effectiveness of the
vaccine.
Status of Yellow Fever Vaccination in Brazil
According
to a February 5, 2008 World Health Organization (WHO) report, Brazil is
one of WHO's pre-qualified manufacturers of yellow fever vaccine. In
Brazil, the vaccine is available at all times at public health clinics
(see a list of state health department websites.
[post_ads_2]
Since
yellow fever vaccination is not required prior to entering Brazil,
whether or not to take it becomes a matter of informed common sense.
Travelers bound for many non-endemic touristic areas in Brazil, such as
Rio, São Paulo or Salvador, need not worry about taking the vaccine. The
constantly updated Cives chart of risk states and cities in Brazil is
one of the reliable sources of information. Find tips about using the
chart in the Cives listing as one of the Top 7 Online Resources About Yellow Fever for Brazil travelers.
