Vaccinations for going to Vietnam?

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MojaveDan

Kudos to Davester as his answer, although short and brief, is more accurate than the long winded copy and paste answers.

The fact is you DONâ€™T NEED vaccinations to travel to Vietnam. No one is going to check you at the airport or kick you out of the country if you donâ€™t have all of your shots. However, it is a very good idea to get vaccination for certain ailments as you donâ€™t want to get sick and end up staying in a hospital during your trip.

You never know where your food comes from in Vietnam, and frankly you may not want to know. A friend of mine who had interned at a Hanoi hospital told me that hepatitis is the second most popular reason why someone visits an emergency room in Vietnam (being in a motorbike accident is the first). So get your hepatitis shots to enjoy the fabulous food there without getting too sick.

There are plenty of things that can poke or scratch you in Vietnam, which could get you infected or sick if you donâ€™t have your tetanus shot up to date. So get your tetanus shot too.

A flu shot is always a good idea because itâ€™s cheap and it helps prevent you from getting sick while traveling.

My physician advised me to take malaria pills, but I found them not to be worth the effort. You have to take malaria pills every day for a couple weeks before your travel and continue taking them while youâ€™re traveling. Also, the malaria pills can make you sick. I had this constant feeling of wanting to throw up while taking the pills, so I stopped.

My physician advised me to get all of my travel vaccinations at the county health clinic instead of going to him because itâ€™s cheaper and he was right. My local county health clinic has what I call the â€œtravel packageâ€, which is pretty much everything I needed or wanted to be vaccinated for when Iâ€™m traveling abroad.

As Davester mentioned, you and your family should bring stuff to cure stomach aches and other common ailments. Our digestive system cannot readily handle the way native Vietnamese foods are prepared, and you will very likely get a bad stomach ache. Pepto-Bismol, Tums and Alka-Seltzer will become your best friends while dining in Vietnam. Another fast remedy is to drink Coca Cola while eating there as the carbonation will help settle your stomach.

Last but not least, you should always ask your doctor these kinds of questions. Although my advice is prudent, Iâ€™m not a doctor and Yahoo Answers should never replace a doctorâ€™s advice.

Have a great trip!

choochootrain

I've been to Vietnam 5 or 6 times, and I've never gotten sick. However, my family always brings tons of different medication ranging from Tylenol to Alavert to Advil to Pepto Bismol in a BIG BIG plastic blag. I recommend that. If you're really afraid, I would just probably ask your doctor about it cuz, then again, I am Vietnamese so I might just have the genes perhaps? If that's even possible...

MoreFoolishThanWise

Tuberculosis is still alive and well in Vietnam. It is also common for restaurants, especially street vendors, to have customers use the same cups all day long without washing them.
Here is what the department of state has to say.

MEDICAL FACILITIES AND HEALTH INFORMATION: Medical facilities in Vietnam do not meet international standards and frequently lack medicines and supplies. Medical personnel in Vietnam, particularly outside Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, may speak little or no English. Doctors and hospitals expect immediate cash payment for health services. International health clinics in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City can provide acceptable care for minor illnesses and injuries, but more serious problems will often require medical evacuation to Bangkok or Singapore. Although many medications can be purchased at pharmacies without having a prescription, some common U.S. medications are not available in Vietnam. Travelers should bring adequate supplies of their medications for their duration of their stay in Vietnam. Travelers may obtain lists of local English-speaking physicians from the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi or the United States Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City. Travelers are reminded that neither office may recommend specific medical practitioners or hospitals. Emergency medical response services are generally unresponsive, unreliable, or completely unavailable.
Travelers should be cautious about drinking non-bottled water and about using ice cubes in drinks. Travelers may wish to drink only bottled or canned beverages, or beverages that have been boiled (such as hot tea and coffee).
Since December of 2007, Hanoi and provinces in northern Vietnam have seen an episodic resurgence of severe acute diarrhea known to be cholera. For more information on cholera, please visit CDCâ€™s web site at http://www.cdc.gov/nczved/dfbmd/disease_listing/cholera_gi.html.

Travelers to Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries affected by avian influenza are cautioned to avoid poultry farms, contact with animals in live food markets, and any surfaces that appear to be contaminated with feces from poultry or other animals. Read more information about Avian Flu .
Tuberculosis is a serious health concern in Vietnam. For further information, please consult the CDC's Travel Notice on TB and other CDC resources at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/yellowBookCh4-TB.aspx and http://www.cdc.gov/tb/default.htm.

Information on vaccinations (such as those for hepatitis, rabies, and Japanese encephalitis) and other health precautions, such as safe food and water precautions and insect bite protection, may be obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Preventionâ€™s (CDC) hotline for international travelers at 1-877-FYI-TRIP (1-877-394-8747) or via the CDCâ€™s web site at http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/default.aspx. For information about outbreaks of infectious diseases abroad, consult the World Health Organizationâ€™s (WHO) web site at http://www.who.int/en. Further health information for travelers is available at http://www.who.int/ith/en.

Active Travel Vietnam

Family travel guides - Good travel health for your family
Travel health depends on your pre departure preparations, your day-to-day health care while traveling and how you handle any medical problem or emergency that does develop. While the list of potential dangers can seem quite frightening, with a little luck, some basic precautions and adequate information few travelers experience more than upset stomachs.

Pre-Departure Preparations
Health Insurance
A travel insurance policy to cover theft, loss and medical problems is a wise idea.
Check the small print:

Some policies specifically exclude "dangerous activities" which can include scuba diving, motorcycling, even trekking. If such activities are on your agenda you will need another sort of policy. A locally acquired motorcycle license may not be valid under your policy.
You may prefer a policy which pays doctors or hospitals directly rather than you having to pay on the spot and claim later. If you have to claim later make sure you keep all documentation. Some policies ask you to call back (collect) to a center in your home country where an immediate assessment of your problem is made.
Check if the policy covers ambulances or an emergency flight home. You may also need to cover the expanse of an additional person to accompany you in the case of certain illnesses. If you have to stretch out you will need two seats and somebody has to pay for them!
Health Preparation
Make sure you and your children are healthy before you start traveling. If you are embarking on a long trip make sure your teeth are OK; there are lots of places where a visit to the dentist would be the last thing you'd want to do.
If children wear glasses take a spare pair and the prescription. Losing glasses can be a real problem, although in many places you can get new spectacles made up quickly, cheaply and competently.
If your kids require a particular medication take an adequate supply, as it may not be available locally. Take the prescription or, better still, part of the packaging showing the generic rather than the brand name (which may not be locally available), as it will make getting replacements easier. It's a wise idea to show you legally use the medication - it's surprising how often over-the-counter drugs from one place are illegal or even banned in another country without a prescription.
Immunizations
Vaccinations provide protection against diseases you might meet along the way. For some countries no immunizations are necessary, but the further off the beaten track you go the more necessary it is to take precautions.
It is important to understand the distinction between vaccines recommended for travel in certain areas and those required by law. Essentially the number of vaccines subject to international health regulations has been dramatically reduced over the last 10 years. Currently yellow fever is the only vaccine subject to international health regulations.
Vaccination as an entry requirement is usually only enforced when coming from an infected area.
All vaccinations should be recorded on an International Health Certificate, which is available from your physician or government health department.
Plan ahead for getting your vaccinations: some of them require an initial shot followed by a booster, while some vaccinations should not be given together. It is recommended you seek medical advice at least six weeks prior to travel.
Most children from Western countries will have been immunized against various diseases during childhood but your doctor may still recommend booster shots against measles or polio, diseases still prevalent in many developing countries. Apart from these, special vaccinations are not normally given to children under 12 months of age. Talk to your doctor.
The period of protection offered by vaccinations differs widely and some are contra-indicated if you are pregnant or likely to become pregnant within three months of the vaccination.
The possible list of vaccinations includes:
Smallpox: Smallpox has now been wiped out worldwide, so immunization is no longer necessary.
Cholera: Not required by law. Protection is poor and it lasts only six months. It is contra-indicated in pregnancy.
Tetanus & Diphtheria: Boosters are necessary every 10 years and protection is highly recommended.
Typhoid: Available either as an injection or oral capsules. Protection lasts from one to three years and is useful if you are traveling for long periods in rural, tropical area. You may get some side effects such as pain at the injection site, fever, headache and a general feeling of being unwell. A new single-dose injectable vaccine, which appears to have few side effects, is now available but is more expensive. Side effects are unusual with the oral form but stomach cramps may be one of these.
Infectious Hepatitis: The most common travel-acquired illness which can be prevented by vaccination. Protection can be provided in two w

Buon_Giorno_VN

You've left it a bit late. Talk to your doctor. I had all mine before I came here to live 6 years ago. Jap. Encep. was the most expensive at $250. All up they cost me $450. Friends who were already living here laughed at me for spending so much but I thought I'd rather be alive and broke than dead with $450 in my pocket.

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