Job Discussion Forums

skirmish · Joined: 01 Dec 2004 Posts: 81

Hey all
Im heading to SE Asia for 6 months and need a rather large prescription of Malarial tablets. Obviously this is gonna be rather expensive to get in Japan.
I wonder if anyone knows anything about ordering meds online, and would they be allowed into Japan?
Cheers

whatthefunk · Joined: 05 Aug 2003 Posts: 130 Location: Japan

where are you going in SE asia? most people dont even worry about it unless theyre going out in some serious jungle for a long period of time.

if you really want some, wait until you get to SE asia and go to a clinic where you will pay 1/4 of the cost. do some research on the different types to see which is best for you.

skirmish · Joined: 01 Dec 2004 Posts: 81

Going to Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Southern China. Could be going into some pretty rural places...
I also heard that buying drugs in SE Asia carries a high chance they are generic drugs which could not be very effective...

JaredW · Posted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 4:10 am Post subject:

Cook your bird well to so as to avoid the flu.

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

Agree with whatthe funk- I have travelled in all those places and for most of them there is quite a low risk (or none at all) of malaria. Really not enough to justify the expense and side effects of taking the medication for such a long time.

Xishuangbanna in the south of Yunnan province in China has the highest risk of the areas you mention- if you plan to go there you might want to take a supply of anti-malarials just for the time you'll be in that area and the requisite time afterwards (you've probably found out that you are supposed to continue with the medication for up to 4 weeks after leaving the risk area.)

Kunming, Lijiang, Tiger Leaping Gorge, Guilin, Yangshuo etc are not risk areas for malaria.

Bear in mind also that malaria medication doesn't protect you from a far more common and almost as nasty disease called dengue fever- I know several people who have caught this while travelling in SE Asia. It is transmitted by day-biting mosquitoes and can make you ill for months.

There is no prevention for dengue other than to cover up, apply mosquito repellant, use a mosquito net etc, which will be just as effective for avoiding malaria.