Precautions Urged for
Travel Associated with Lunar New Year –
Tieng Viet
For
Immediate Release: January 30, 2008
Contact: Deanne Thompson (714) 834-2178
(Santa Ana) - People traveling for the Lunar
New Year to countries where avian influenza A (H5N1) cases have
been reported are urged to take precautions before, during and
after their travel.
Before traveling abroad, visit the Centers for
Disease Control website at
www.cdc.gov/travel for current travel health
information. Make sure all of your routine and travel-related
vaccinations are up-to-date and you have medications to prevent
malaria if you are traveling to a malaria-endemic area. Pack a
travel health kit containing your routine medications, basic
first aid supplies, insect repellant and alcohol-based hand gels
to clean your hands. Do not travel if you are sick.
The celebration of the Lunar New Year results
in increased travel between the United States and many Asian
countries. Human cases of avian influenza A (H5N1), or bird flu,
have been reported in Azerbaijan, Cambodia, China, Djibouti,
Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Lao People’s Democratic Republic,
Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.
Additional countries in Asia, Europe and Africa have reported
H5N1 infections in birds. While there are not any restrictions
on travel to these countries, certain precautions are
recommended:
-
During travel, avoid direct contact with
birds, including poultry and wild birds and do not visit
poultry farms or bird markets where live birds are kept.
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, or use
alcohol-based hand gels for hand cleaning when soap and
water is not available. Make sure that all poultry products,
including eggs, are thoroughly cooked before eating.
-
After returning, monitor your health for
10 days. If you develop a fever plus cough, sore throat or
trouble breathing, contact your physician and provide
information about your symptoms, where you traveled and if
you had direct contact with poultry or with sick people.
-
Orange County physicians treating patients
with respiratory symptoms who have traveled to areas with
avian influenza A (H5N1) cases in humans or birds in the 10
days prior to the onset of symptoms should contact Public
Health immediately at (714) 834-8180 for appropriate
testing.
To protect their overall health, travelers
should take additional precautions such as prevention of
mosquito bites, avoiding contaminated food and water, and
avoiding contact with animals. See the CDC travel website for
more information.
# # # |
