Getting malaria pills in BA for travel to Brazil

[FrederikS]

Hi all,

My girlfriend and I are travelling to Brazil next month, and we're also planning to go to some of the areas further up north where malaria medication is probably a wise thing to have.

Is there a good place in BA to go to for reliable advice on which pills to take, where and when, and of course, to buy them?

Thanks for your advice!
Frederik

 

[elhombresinnombre]

I mentioned a pharmacy that sold anti-malarials in this archived post http://baexpats.org/expat-life/2856-malaria-pills.html#post14679 and I expect you could get advice there too if you want.

You might want to brief yourself on malaria and other diseases and parasites before you go and I've found this to be a good, reliable source. http://www.traveldoctor.co.uk/samerica.htm#1sta If you are going into a disease-ridden area, it really is worthwhile getting vaccinated up front and if you are travelling from an affected area certain countries won't let you in unless you can prove you have been immunised (against Yellow Fever, for instance).

 

[mcaffa]

Anyone know if anti-malarials are really necessary for Ecuador? I'll be backpacking around the country for 9 days in July and am wondering if it is worth taking anything or not (I'd prefer not to have to).

 

[FrederikS]

Thanks. We are only really in malarial areas for a day or five, so I'd like to get some good advice on what pills are really necessary, if at all. Problem is that our doctors are in the Netherlands and somewhat hard to reach...

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Anyone know if anti-malarials are really necessary for Ecuador? I'll be backpacking around the country for 9 days in July and am wondering if it is worth taking anything or not (I'd prefer not to have to).

It depends on which parts of Ecuador you are visiting. You will get a rough idea from looking at the maps on the link I provided (above) but there's more detailed information out there if you want to search for it.

In the pharmacies in Quito they sell Fansidar. It's cheap (it cost me exactly US$1 per week in 2007) effective and in common with certain other drugs, can be used as a treatment if you are unfortunate enough to catch malaria.

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Thanks. We are only really in malarial areas for a day or five, so I'd like to get some good advice on what pills are really necessary, if at all. Problem is that our doctors are in the Netherlands and somewhat hard to reach...

Malaria is a bit like sex: there's no rule that says you can't get pregnant the first time you have sex and there's no rule that says you can't get malaria the first day you arrive in an endemic area.

 

[orwellian]

Are you going to the jungle? If not you don't need them. And if you are gonna take them, I suggest you go with the ones you take daily because the weekly ones can give you nasty side effects. Can you read Spanish? Just read the slip on the medications. And buy them in any pharmacy.

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Are you going to the jungle? If not you don't need them. And if you are gonna take them, I suggest you go with the ones you take daily because the weekly ones can give you nasty side effects. Can you read Spanish? Just read the slip on the medications. And buy them in any pharmacy.

We all know Orwellian likes to be edgy and different and is probably just saying this stuff to be controversial but let's take this apart line by line. Malaria exists where the breeding conditions are right and the parasite is present and shows no respect for urban, rural or jungle boundaries. Google for it.

One may also experience side effects from one-a-day medication - particularly Doxycycline. Most people suffer no ill-effects from most anti-malarials but if you are unfortunate in that respect, the valid choices are to try an alternative that offers similar protection, to put up with the discomfort or not to visit. To visit a known malarial area unprotected is stupid. There are people who come back and say 'I didn't take medication and I'm okay' but remember: they are the ones who came back.

Not all pharmacies in Buenos Aires stock anti-malarials and those that do may not stock the product you want so don't leave your purchase until the last minute.

 

[orwellian]

Yeah of course it exists in rural areas. So does dengue here in Buenos Aires. And the city likes to remind us about that fact on posters all over the city. But how many people die from it? Really, I'd worry about crossing the street a lot more.

But yeah, I had some really nasty side effects from the weekly ones. And elhombresinnombre might be right. The daily ones might be really bad too. Which kinda brings us back to if you should consider taking them at all.

Funny though that everyone accuses me of always talking politics. But when I do try to offer some practical help they attack me for that too. I hate to state the obvious but you need to read different opinions and then make up your own informative decision.

 

[elhombresinnombre]

Funny though that everyone accuses me of always talking politics. But when I do try to offer some practical help they attack me for that too. I hate to state the obvious but you need to read different opinions and then make up your own informative decision.

Then I apologise unreservedly for misinterpreting you. Malaria kills about a million people annually - people who want to avoid it but who haven't enough money to do even the simple things that keep the disease at bay - and it irks me that so many - for the want of a better word - 'Westerners' , either out of ignorance or bravado, won't show that disease a little respect.