Common childhood vaccines include Hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, measles, mumps, rubella and polio. Check with your family doctor to make sure all these vaccines are up to date. Booster shots may be necessary for tetanus, measles and diphtheria. Get these vaccines updated before traveling to any African country.
Vaccinations for hepatitis A, rabies, typhoid and meningococcal meningitis are strongly recommended before entering any African country. These are vaccines that are not commonly given during childhood. The rabies vaccination is recommended for anyone who will be spending a great deal of time outdoors, especially those who will be in direct contact with bats, carnivores and other mammals. A typhoid vaccination is recommended for any person traveling to a rural village or small city in southern Africa, as exposure can come from food and water sources.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), persons traveling to South Africa from a country where yellow fever is present must show proof that they have been vaccinated for yellow fever. Travel to several countries in Africa may also require yellow fever vaccinations. Some African countries that require proof of yellow fever immunization include the Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Angola, Tanzania and Ghana.
There are no vaccines to prevent malaria; however, you can avoid getting sick with malaria when traveling to known malaria zones in Africa. Preventative antimalarial drugs such as atovaquone/proguanil, chloroquine phosphate or doxycycline may be prescribed by a physician to help prevent malaria. Other preventative measures include wearing long pants and shirts with long sleeves to prevent mosquito bites, sleeping in screened rooms or using bed nets and using plenty of insect repellent.
Before getting any vaccines, speak with your family doctor or health care provider on what vaccines you are already current with, what you will need for traveling out of the country and whether the vaccines will interact with medication you are currently taking. By choosing not to get vaccinated you may be prevented from getting into certain countries in Africa and run the risk of being infected with diseases like yellow fever, hepatitis A and B, meningitis or worse.
