The Travel Doctor
Traveller's medical & vaccination centre
Health Alerts
Travel Doctor TMVC provides the latest health and travel alerts, including updates from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
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Bali Rabies Situation
Thursday, 5 November, 2009
Although there has been no further official reports since our update published on 19th October many major travel websites have been publicising the problem in recent days.
Our emphasis now has to be that for practical purposes post exposure vaccination is not available in Bali, or at least the availability is unpredictable.
Activities that are particularly risky include:
- Working closely with animals of unknown vaccination history.
- Spending a lot of time in a rural area or doing outdoor activities such as bicycling, camping, or hiking.
- Touching or playing with animals.
If you are bitten or scratched by a dog or any other mammal, cleanse the wound thoroughly with soap and water and apply an antiseptic like Betadine if available. Then do not take any chances but, since daily flights are available, get the first flight to Australia (or Singapore) to start rabies “post exposure” vaccination course including immunoglobulin.
Despite the cost. (approximately equivalent to 4 dinners in a good restaurant) and very low overall risk vaccination before travel is well worth considering. It is highly efficient but bear in mind that it involves a course of three inoculations over a four week period.
