WHO and CDC continue to recommend that travelers to areas experiencing
outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 in poultry should avoid contact with
live animal markets and poultry farms. Large amounts of the virus are known
to be excreted in the droppings from infected birds. Populations in affected
countries are advised to avoid contact with dead migratory birds or wild
birds showing signs of disease.
Direct contact with infected poultry, or surfaces and objects contaminated
by their droppings, is considered the main route of human infection. Exposure
risk is considered highest during slaughter, defeathering, butchering,
and preparation of poultry for cooking. There is no evidence that properly
cooked poultry or poultry products can be a source of infection.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
The CDC Travel Health Precautions outline specific measures for travelers
to take before, during, and after travel. Suggested actions include:
Before any international travel to an area affected by H5N1 avian influenza
Visit CDC's Travelers’ Health
in Southeast Asia to educate yourself and
others who may be traveling with you about
any disease risks and CDC health recommendations for international
travel in
areas you plan to visit. For a list of affected areas and other information
about avian influenza, see the CDC
website.
Be sure you are up to date with all your vaccinations, and see your
doctor or health-care provider, ideally 4–6 weeks before travel, to
get any additional vaccination medications or information you may need.
Currently
there is no inoculation or vaccination to prevent contracting H5N1
avian influenza.
Assemble a travel health kit containing basic first aid and
medical supplies. Be sure to include a thermometer and alcohol-based
hand
gel for hand hygiene.
See the Travelers
Health Kit in "Health Information for International Travel"
for other suggested items.
Identify in-country health-care resources in advance of your trip.
Avoid all direct contact with poultry, including touching
well-appearing, sick, or dead chickens and ducks. Avoid places such as
poultry farms and
bird markets where live poultry are raised or kept, and avoid handling
surfaces contaminated with poultry feces or secretions.
As with other infectious illnesses, one of the most important preventive
practices is careful and frequent hand washing. Cleaning your hands
often with soap and water removes potentially infectious material from your skin
and helps prevent disease transmission. Waterless alcohol-based
hand gels
may be used when soap is not available and hands are not visibly
soiled.
Influenza viruses are destroyed by heat; therefore, as a precaution,
all foods from poultry, including eggs and poultry blood, should be thoroughly
cooked.
If you become sick with symptoms such as a fever, difficulty breathing,
or cough, or with any illness that requires prompt medical attention,
the Study Center staff can assist you in locating medical services and informing
your family as requested.
After your return
Monitor your health for 10 days.
If you become ill with fever and develop a cough or difficulty breathing
or if you develop any illness during this 10-day period, consult
a health-care provider. Before you visit a health-care setting, tell the provider
the
following:
1) your symptoms
2) where you traveled
3) if you
have had direct contact with poultry.
This way, he or she can be aware that
you have traveled to an area reporting avian influenza.
