Health risks
Senegal is a developing West African country. Facilities for tourists are widely available, but they vary in quality. The capital is Dakar.
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CRIME : Street crime in Senegal poses moderate risks for visitors. Most reported incidents involve pickpockets, purse snatchers and street scam artists, who are especially active at events that draw large crowds or when international meetings occur.
MEDICAL FACILITIES: Several hospitals and clinics in Dakar can treat major and minor injuries and illnesses. There is inadequate inpatient psychiatric care, though there is very good office-based psychiatry. Public hospitals do not meet western standards, but several private clinics are at the level of Western hospitals.
Travellers should carry a supply of any needed prescription medicines, along with copies of the prescriptions, including the generic name for the drugs, and a supply of preferred over-the-counter medications.
More than 25 mill. people are infected by HIV in the subsaharian Africa.
Arthropodborne diseases are a great problem in this region af Africa.
We recommend:
- Usage of long-sleeved shirt and long pants to wear whenever possible while outside, to prevent illnesses carried by insects
- Usage of insect repellent containing DEET (diethylmethyltoluamide), in 30%–35% strength for adults and 6%–10% for children. Unless you are staying in air-conditioned or well-screened housing
- Usage of a bed net impregnated with the insecticide permethrin.
- Staying and sleeping in air-conditioned houses
Arthropod borne diseases:
- Malaria
- Filariasis
- Leishamaniasis
- Relapsing fever
- Epidemic typhus
- Onchocerciasis
- Trypanosomiasis
Water- and foodborne diseases:
- Cholera
- Amoebiasis
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis E
- Typhoid fever
- Giardiasis
- ETEC E.coli
Other diseases:
- Hepatitis B
- Trachoma
- HIV
- Poliomyelitis
- Schistosomiasis (Bilharziasis)
- Meningitis
Vaccinations recommended:
- Yellow fever when entering from a yellow fever endemic region.
- Hepatitis A or Immune Globulin (IG)
- Hepatitis B or Immune Globulin
- Meningitis
- Typhoid fever - vaccination is particularly important because of the presence of S. typhi strains resistant to multiple antibiotics in this region
- Rabies - if risk for contact with wild or domestic animals
- A booster for tetanus/diphtheria - if not covered which indicates not vaccinated within th last 10 years.
Stay healthy:
- Wash hands often with soap and water;
- Drink only boiled water, or water and carbonated (bubbly) drinks in cans;
- Avoid tap water, fountain drinks, and ice cubes;
- Eat only thoroughly cooked food or fruits and vegetables you have peeled yourself. Remember: boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it;
- Protect yourself from insects by remaining in well-screened areas, using repellents (applied sparingly at 4-hour intervals) and permethrin-impregnated mosquito nets, and wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants from dusk through dawn;
- Prevent fungal and parasitic infections, keep feet clean and dry, and do not go barefoot;
- Do not travel at night;
- Trafic accidents are frequent, be careful;
- Always use latex condoms to reduce the risk of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases;
- Don't eat food purchased from street vendors;
- Use mefloquine as malaria prophylaxis.(Chloroquine resistance)
Compulsory vaccinations: yellow fever certificate if arriving from endemic areas.
Recommended immunisations: diphtheria, hepatitis A, *hepatitis B, malaria, *meningitis, polio, *TB, tetanus, typhoid, yellow fever.
* recommended in some circumstances, travellers making 3 or more visits per year, stays of more than 3 months in a rural area, high-risk occupational groups & backpackers staying more than 1 month.
Risks: malaria exists all year throughout the country. There is less risk from Jan-Jun in central western regions. Rabies.
Blood transfusion & tissue transplantation risk according to UK BTS:
- Malaria: Yes, All year in whole country
- Maliaria Risk Category: A
- Trypanasoma Cruzi Risk: No
- Sub Saharan Africa: Yes
- West Nile Virus Risk: No
- Chikungunya Virus Risk: No
Yellow fever vaccination requirements and recommendations and malaria situation in Senegal
Food and Water Safety
HIV Risk
Check travelers health risks by CDC before, after and while traveling to Senegal and prevention before arrival at Senegal.
Travel data, health safety, warnings and recommendations for Canadian who willing to visit Senegal
