Anyone ever been to India without a typhoid vaccination?

AreaCode707

Lifer
Sep 21, 2001
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Work gave me short notice marching orders to Bangalore.

Saw the doc yesterday (leaving tomorrow). Got the typhoid scrip and went to get it filled.

Doc called me while I was waiting for the pharm to get it shipped in and said there's a possible interaction with my arthritis meds (I'm on Enbrel and therefore technically immuno-suppressed, though it rarely effects my life. Doc said taking the two together could produce typhoid symptoms.

Pharmacist says it probably wouldn't do that but would lessen the efficacy of the typhoid meds, but that he really doesn't know and I should Google it (!)

Internet says: CONTRAINDICATED! The manufacturer official page of my arthritis meds is pretty damn clear.

Given the short notice of the trip sounds like the typhoid meds wouldn't do any damn good anyway since it takes a week to kick in anyway. Thus I leave tomorrow and cross my fingers and plan to be extra careful in what I eat and drink. I'm only there five days, entire time in an office or "English" hotel...

So, am I going to die? :(

[edit] Manufacturer page:
http://www.enbrel.com/RheumPro/dosing-administration.jspx
Vaccinations, including yellow fever, BCG, rubella, polio, cholera, typhoid, and varicella2-5

When taking ENBREL, patients may receive concurrent vaccination, except for live vaccines. Patients with significant exposure to varicella virus should temporarily discontinue ENBREL therapy and be considered for prophylactic treatment.
 

StinkyPinky

Diamond Member
Jul 6, 2002
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I'd be reluctant. Typhoid is extremely unpleasant. I would talk to your doc and get a note stating you are unable to effectively be vaccinatated. Then use that note to get out of it.
 

Farang

Lifer
Jul 7, 2003
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From what I recall there are a couple of options. You can take some refrigerated pills for 4 days straight or you can get a shot.

I have had typhoid before. It is not fun, and just like your doctors are clueless now they are also clueless when it comes to typhoid. They told me I was the only case that year at the hospital.

That said I think I was just unlucky. I knew plenty of people who never got the vaccine and were just fine.

You're still probably going to get sick from something in India, almost everybody does their first week there.
 

randomrogue

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2011
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I didn't get it the first time I went there. I don't think it was even recommended for short trips.

When I did get it I did the pills.

Why did you highlight those other vaccinations? Cholera and Yellow Fever are for very specific parts of the world.
 

brainhulk

Diamond Member
Sep 14, 2007
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the oral formulation is the live attenuated vaccine. Don't take it if you are on Enbrel.

Typhim VI is the polysaccharide IM shot vaccine. It doesn't contain any live bacteria but takes two weeks to mount sufficient titers

I wouldn't go at all...lol
 

randomrogue

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2011
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Most important is to bring a prescription of sipro with you. Pepto would probably be good to have to. By the time you get delhi belly over there you'll be so miserable that you'll just want to crawl up and die in the toilet. Although you can buy medicine from pharmacies on the street they require a doctor's note/prescription to give you an antibiotic. It's far better to just have some with you. With that said my prescription coverage charged me like $100 for the subscription so I didn't get it in the states. I bought it for $1 in Bangkok instead since I landed there first.
 

brainhulk

Diamond Member
Sep 14, 2007
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Most important is to bring a prescription of sipro with you. Pepto would probably be good to have to. By the time you get delhi belly over there you'll be so miserable that you'll just want to crawl up and die in the toilet. Although you can buy medicine from pharmacies on the street they require a doctor's note/prescription to give you an antibiotic. It's far better to just have some with you. With that said my prescription coverage charged me like $100 for the subscription so I didn't get it in the states. I bought it for $1 in Bangkok instead since I landed there first.

southeast asia Typhoid has high resistance to quinolones now. i would try to find cefixime, azithromycin, or septra instead
 

randomrogue

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2011
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southeast asia Typhoid has high resistance to quinolones now. i would try to find cefixime, azithromycin, or septra instead

I was talking about regular Delhi Belly. It's almost always bacterial and Sipro will clear it up pretty quick. I will say this though. While I'd be feeling better the next day in other places it took longer in India. When you get ill there it's almost violently horrible. My hotel had a big bathroom with toilet, shower, table, etc in there so I just slept between the toilet and the shower. I checked out as soon as I felt better and I wouldn't be surprised if they had no choice but to burn that building down and start over.
 

randomrogue

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2011
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lol thinking back on that catastrophe has me laughing pretty hard. When I was ill I was using so much toilet paper that room service was delivering it several times a day. No matter what I did though the toilet paper couldn't handle it. So it was in and out of the shower.

Even funnier is that I've been back to India since then. It really is a great country. Just don't eat the street food and keep your hands clean.
 

SagaLore

Elite Member
Dec 18, 2001
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No, I took the typhoid stuff a few weeks before my first trip to India.

If you're not going to be there for very long and don't plan on heading out into any rural areas, you should be okay. The most important prescription you need to pick up is Cipro. If you don't plan on taking an anti-malaria, at the very least drink lots of Tonic water while you're there.

DO NOT HAVE ANY DRINKS WITH ICE IN IT.
 

AreaCode707

Lifer
Sep 21, 2001
18,445
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I didn't get it the first time I went there. I don't think it was even recommended for short trips.

When I did get it I did the pills.

Why did you highlight those other vaccinations? Cholera and Yellow Fever are for very specific parts of the world.
Oh, I just copied the content from the source website and that stuff was already highlighted. Didn't bother to reformat.
 

ichy

Diamond Member
Oct 5, 2006
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I've never been to India but growing up my family lived in several African countries that were just as nasty as India for years. We were never vaccinated against typhoid. I believe that back then the vaccine had the potential for pretty nasty side effects so we were told not to get it. You should be ok as long as you use common sense. No drinks with ice, drink only bottled water that has been opened in front of you, no street food. An even better idea of course is not to go to India, especially if you're immune-compromised.
 

AreaCode707

Lifer
Sep 21, 2001
18,445
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Well, I'm here. It's been 2 hours and I'm not dead yet, but I still think y'all have a good chance of inheriting my stuff.
 

Jaskalas

Lifer
Jun 23, 2004
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I don't think Americans in general know anything about typhoid. For my part, I'm going to have to look this stuff up. My immediate assumption is a natural water born disease that we eradicated with chlorination.

Yup... but not naturally in water.
 

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
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Every so often, I see things like this that make me really appreciate the great value of not having to worry about dying (or wishing I had) from drinking tap water.
 

Anonemous

Diamond Member
May 19, 2003
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Every so often, I see things like this that make me really appreciate the great value of not having to worry about dying (or wishing I had) from drinking tap water.

I remember from that other thread to not even drink the residual tap water in your mouth when you brush your teeth.