Journal of travel medicine
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Trekking in Nepal is a popular adventure travel activity involving more than 80,000 people of all ages annually. This study focuses on the demographic characteristics and clinical course of altitude illness patients evacuated to Kathmandu and estimates the rates of evacuation in different regions of Nepal. ⋯ Altitude illness that results in evacuation occurs more commonly among trekkers in the Everest region and among older trekkers. The outcome of all persons evacuated for altitude illness was uniformly good, and the rate of recovery was rapid. However, the incidence of altitude illness-related death continued to rise over past decade.
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Data on relative rates of acquisition of gastrointestinal infections by travelers are incomplete. The objective of this study was to analyze infections associated with oral ingestion of pathogens in international travelers in relation to place of exposure. ⋯ This analysis of morbidity associated with oral ingestion of pathogens abroad determines which parts of the world currently are high-risk destinations.
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Since the year 2000, in Italy, there has been a constant decrease in the number of cases of imported malaria in immigrants. Nevertheless, immigrants still account for about 70% of reported cases. To our knowledge, no data are yet available on imported malaria in children. This paper describes the main characteristics of malaria cases observed in recent years in the three main hospitals in Verona (roughly representing 10% of all cases reported in Italy in the period), with a special focus on the poorly known problem of imported malaria in children. ⋯ Our data confirm a significant difference both in clinical and in parasitological findings between semi-immune and nonimmune patients. We identified two populations of immigrant children: semi-immune (recent immigrants) and nonimmune (VRF). The latter is a high-risk group for severe malaria. Educational actions should be specially designed for immigrants traveling to VRF, focusing on the risk of severe malaria for both adults and children.
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Fascioliasis is a reemerging zoonosis endemic in many parts of the world. Reports of imported fascioliasis by migrants into nonendemic countries are common, but tourists and business travelers are rarely afflicted. Here, we report a case of a New Zealander traveler who acquired the infection on a business trip.
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Skin infections associated with visits to tropical countries are well known. In most of the cases, the infection is caused by Staphylococcus aureus. ⋯ But several patients suffer from recurrent skin infections. Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) is a cytotoxin produced by S aureus, which is associated with severe necrotic skin lesions and with a high contagiosity.