3

I am planning on going to Cambodia in near future, I did all recommended vaccinations for Thailand, namely:

Above were free in UK from my GP while additional vaccinations are not... So I had figured to save some money to do them in Bangkok instead...

On the other hand after looking into statistics I realized that whole immunization thing is a it overreacted... for example there were very few deaths from malaria in 2016... and I wouldn't want to waste money on something I don't need... (and would prefer to spend them on drugs instead)

What immunizations are recommended or necessary for Cambodia?

Improve this question
6
  • Many countries' health services publish recommended vaccinations for travelling. The CDC in the US, for example, recommends hepatitis A and typhoid. Your country will probably provide similar guidelines.
    – Roddy of the Frozen Peas
    Dec 8, 2016 at 17:10
  • 6
    Just a note that number of deaths from a disease is a very incomplete indication of the importance of immunization. Sometimes there are few deaths because the vast majority of the population is immunized, but the death rate among non-immunized people may be much higher. Also, some diseases may have a low risk of death, but a high risk of extremely unpleasant and poorly treatable illness, perhaps with permanent (non-fatal) after-effects. It might be worth getting immunized to reduce that risk.
    – Nate Eldredge
    Dec 8, 2016 at 17:25
  • 1
    Best to review what the NHS suggests for the destination.
    – Giorgio
    Dec 8, 2016 at 18:48
  • Maybe someone should make a canonical "what vaccinations do I need to travel to a certain country?" question and answer it with links to a few travel health advisory sites (CDC, NHS, etc) and instructions on how to navigate to per-country pages on each site?
    – Urbana
    Dec 8, 2016 at 20:24
  • @Dorothy Hi Dorothy, I did check NHS suggestions, but do I really need to get Rabies, J.Encephalitis, and other stuff,.. more I look at statistics more this seems like a 'cargo cult' to scare westerners into buying something one might not need.... Someone local could shine some light on actual situation...
    – Matas Vaitkevicius
    Dec 9, 2016 at 7:50

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
1

No vaccinations are required for Cambodia. For recommended ones you need to ask your doctor to make sure your current vaccinations are up-to-date and boosting is not needed. Especially make sure your tetanus is up-to-date (in USA you usually get it as part of diphtheria TDaP, but in your country it may be different), as if you're hiking in remote areas, this is a big concern. Note that you can die from tetanus, this is not a joke.

Another one I'd recommend is a flu shot. You'd be flying in a plane, walking in airports and staying in lines full of people, and some of them will be sick.

Also consider rabies vaccine if you think you might get into contact with wild animals.

Regarding your plan to save money and do them in BKK: most shots require time to develop immunity (2+ weeks for a flu shot); some require multiple shots (HepAB, HPV), so keep this in mind when planning your schedule.

Improve this answer
2
  • Malaria chemoprophylaxis may be indicated in some areas (not strictly a vaccination, but related). It's probably best if you link to an authoritative source (CDC, NHS, etc...), but I agree that "ask your doctor" is the best course of action. Clinics specialize in travel health and can recommend what you need based on your plans and past vaccination history.
    – Zach Lipton
    Dec 9, 2016 at 1:28
  • 1
    Malaria is different because comparing to vaccines, malaria medicine has stronger side effects, and thus is not always recommended. This is definitely the case to ask a doctor, especially considering that most anti-malaria medication is prescription only, at least in USA.
    – George Y.
    Dec 9, 2016 at 2:10

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .