Make sure to check Travel Notices in Effect for this area.

The following vaccinations and health recommendations are taken from the
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, www.CDC.gov .

Recommended Vaccinations and Preventative Medications:

• Hepatitis A or immune globulin (IG)
• Hepatitis B
• Malaria
• Meningococcal (meningitis)
• Rabies
• Typhoid vaccine
• Yellow Fever
• As needed, booster doses for tetanus-diphtheria, measles, and a one-time dose of the polio vaccine for adults.

Required Vaccinations:

• A certificate of yellow fever vaccination may be required for entry into certain countries in Central Africa. For detailed information, see Yellow Fever Vaccine Requirements and Information on Malaria Risk and Prophylaxis, by Country.

 

Health Risks:

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. Your risk of malaria may be high in all countries in Central Africa, including cities. All travelers to Central Africa, including infants, children, and former residents of Central Africa, may be at risk for malaria. Prevent this serious disease by seeing your health care provider for a prescription antimalarial drug and by protecting yourself against mosquito bites. All travelers should take one of the following drugs:

• atovaquone/proguanil,
• doxycycline,
• mefloquine, or
• primaquine (in special circumstances).

Food and Waterbornee Diseases:

Make sure your food and drinking water are safe. Food and Waterbornee diseases are the primary cause of illness in travelers. Travelers’ diarrhea can be caused by viruses, bacteria, or parasites, which are found throughout Central Africa and can contaminate food or water. Infections may cause diarrhea and vomiting (E. coli, Salmonella, cholera, and parasites), fever (typhoid fever and toxoplasmosis), or liver damage ( hepatitis).

Other Disease Risks:

Dengue, filariasis, leishmaniasis, and onchocerciasis (river blindness) are other diseases carried by insects that also occur in this region. Protecting yourself against insect bites will help to prevent these diseases. The risk for contracting African sleeping sickness (trypanosomiasis), which is caused by the bite of an infected tsetse fly, is high in northern Angola, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and southern Sudan and there is significant risk of infection for travelers visiting or working in rural areas. A number of rickettsial infections also occur in this region. Wearing protective clothing and avoiding rural areas or areas of dense vegetation along streams, is the best protection. Schistosomiasis, a parasitic infection, can be contracted in fresh water in this region. Do not swim in fresh water (except in well-chlorinated swimming pools) in these countries. (For more information, please see Swimming and Recreational Water Precautions.) Other infections that tend to occur more often in longer-term travelers (or immigrants from the region) include tuberculosis, HIV and hepatitis B.

What you need to bring with you:

• Long-sleeved shirt, long pants, and a hat to wear whenever possible while outside, to prevent illnesses carried by insects
• Insect repellent containing DEET.
• Bed nets treated with Permethrin.
• Flying-insect spray to help clear rooms of mosquitoes. The product should contain a pyrethroid insecticide; these insecticides quickly kill flying insects, including mosquitoes.
• Portable water filters to filter or purify water. See Preventing Cryptosporidiosis: A Guide to Water Filters and Bottled Water for more detailed information.
• Sun Block, sunglasses, and a hat for protection from harmful effects of UV sun rays.
• Prescription medications: make sure you have enough to last during your trip, as well as a copy of the prescription(s) or letter from your health-care provider on office stationery explaining that the medication has been prescribed for you.
• Always carry medications in their original containers, in your carry-on luggage.
• Be sure to bring along over-the-counter antidiarrheal medication (e.g., bismuth subsalicylate, loperamide) and an antibiotic prescribed by your doctor to self-treat moderate to severe diarrhea.
• New security measures were implemented on August 10, 2006, regarding what passengers may carry onto the airplane. Up-to-date information may be obtained at the Transportation Security Administration’s Guidance For Airline Passengers Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions.

To stay healthy on your trip, make sure to:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water or, if hands are not visibly soiled, use a waterless, alcohol-based hand rub to remove potentially infectious materials from your skin and help prevent disease transmission.
• In developing countries, drink only filtered water, or carbonated (bubbly) drinks in cans or bottles. Avoid tap water, fountain drinks, and ice cubes.
• Take your malaria prevention medication before, during, and after travel, as directed. (See your health care provider for a prescription.)
• To prevent fungal and parasitic infections, keep feet clean and dry, and do not go barefoot, even on beaches.
• Protect yourself from mosquito insect bites:
  • Wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and hats when outdoors.
  • Use insect repellents that contain DEET (N, N-diethylmethyltoluamide).
  • If no screening or air conditioning is available: use a pyrethroid-containing spray in living and sleeping areas during evening and night-time hours; sleep under bed nets, preferably insecticide-treated ones.
  • If you are visiting friends and relatives in your home country, see additional special information about malaria prevention in Recent Immigrants to the U.S. from Malarious Countries Returning 'Home' to Visit Friends and Relatives on the CDC Malaria site.

Do not:

• Do not eat food purchased from street vendors or food that is not well cooked to reduce risk of infection (i.e., hepatitis A and typhoid fever).
• Do not drink beverages with ice.
• Avoid dairy products, unless you know they have been pasteurized.
• Do not swim in fresh water to avoid exposure to certain water-borne diseases such as schistosomiasis. (For more information, please see Swimming and Recreational Water Precautions.)
• Do not handle animals, especially monkeys, dogs, and cats, to avoid bites and serious diseases (including rabies and plague). Consider pre-exposure rabies vaccination if you might have extensive unprotected outdoor exposure in rural areas. For more information, please see Animal-Associated Hazards.
• Do not share needles for tattoos, body piercing or injections to prevent infections such as HIV and hepatitis B.
• Avoid poultry farms, bird markets, and other places where live poultry is raised or kept.

 

More detailed information on this region is available at www cdc.gov