MyMedR

RATIONALE FOR REVIEW: Eye diseases pose a significant public health and economic burden, particularly for travellers exposed to ocular hazards who may lack access to specialist eye care. This article offers an evidence-based review for travel-health practitioners, with a particular emphasis on ocular infections and trauma that are more prevalent among travellers. Providing an overview of these issues will allow travel health practitioners to comprehensively address ophthalmic considerations of travel.

METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed and Embase electronic databases, using keywords related to travel medicine and ophthalmology. Inclusion was based on the relevant contribution to epidemiology, aetiology, diagnostics, management and long-term consequences of travel-related eye conditions. The data were analysed using narrative synthesis.

KEY FINDINGS: This literature review highlighted that various travel-related eye conditions may occur. Travellers should be aware of the risk of travel-related ocular complications, which can arise from ocular infections, high-risk activities, high altitude and space travel. The economic and logistical challenges associated with medical tourism for ophthalmic procedures are discussed. For travellers with pre-existing eye conditions or visual impairment, careful planning may be needed to promote eye health and ensure safety of travel.

CONCLUSIONS: Travel medicine practitioners should have a comprehensive understanding of the major ocular risks associated with overseas travel, including eye infections, eye injuries and solar eye damage. Further research in this area can enhance overall wellness and alleviate the burden of ocular diseases on travellers. Evidence-based guidelines based on research can also improve the quality of care and prevent long-term vision problems.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Journal author funding sources and conflict of interest disclosures in travel medicine

Lim BWW, Flaherty GT

J Travel Med, 2023 Jun 23;30(4).

PMID: 37040343 DOI: 10.1093/jtm/taad046

Matched MeSH terms: Travel Medicine

Preliminary study of dengue virus infection in Iran

Chinikar S, Ghiasi SM, Shah-Hosseini N, Mostafavi E, Moradi M, Khakifirouz S, et al.

Travel Med Infect Dis, 2013 May-Jun;11(3):166-9.

PMID: 23194952 DOI: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2012.10.001

Dengue fever is one of the most important arthropod-borne viral diseases of public health significance. It is endemic in most tropical and subtropical parts of the world, many of which are popular tourist destinations. The presence of dengue infection was examined in Iranian patients who were referred to the Arboviruses and Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory of the Pasteur Institute of Iran and tested negative for Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) between 2000 and 2012. Serum samples from these patients were tested for the presence of specific IgG and IgM and viral nucleic acid in blood. Of the 300 sera tested, 15 (5%) were seropositive, and 3 (1%) were both serologically and PCR positive. Of the 15 seropositive cases, 8 (53.3%) had travelled to endemic areas including Malaysia (5, 62.5%), India (2, 25%) and Thailand (1, 12.5%). In contrast, 7 (46.7%) of the cases had not reported travelling abroad. Of these, six cases were from the Sistan and Baluchistan province in southeast Iran and neighbouring Pakistan. Travellers play a key role in the epidemiology of dengue infection in Iran and it is recommended that travellers to endemic areas take precautionary measures to avoid mosquito bites.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel Medicine*

An Australian experience with malaria

George CR, O'Neill BJ, Garth JM

Med J Aust, 1971 May 22;1(21):1110-3.

PMID: 4932319

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Learning to travel: reducing the health risks of study abroad opportunities

Flaherty GT, Leong SW, Geoghegan R

J Travel Med, 2018 01 01;25(1).

PMID: 30239844 DOI: 10.1093/jtm/tay085

Matched MeSH terms: Travel*; Travel Medicine

Fulltext Food restrictions during pregnancy among Indigenous Temiar women in peninsular Malaysia

Sharifah Zahhura SA, Nilan P, Germov J

Malays J Nutr, 2012 Aug;18(2):243-53.

PMID: 24575670 MyJurnal

INTRODUCTION: A qualitative comparative case study was conducted to compare and contrast food taboos and avoidance practices during pregnancy among Orang Asli or indigenous Temiar women in four distinct locations that represent different lifestyle experiences and cultural practices.
METHODS: Through snowballing sampling, a total of 38 participants took part in five focus groups: one group each in Pos Simpor and Pos Tohoi in Kelantan state, one group in Batu 12, Gombak in Selangor state, and two groups in a regroupment scheme (RPSOA) in Kuala Betis, Kelantan. All the transcripts were coded, categorised and 'thematised' using the software package for handling qualitative data, NVivo 8.
RESULTS: Variant food prohibitions were recorded among the Temiar women residing in different locations, which differ in food sources and ways of obtaining food. Consumption of seventeen types of food items was prohibited for a pregnant Temiar woman and her husband during the prenatal period. Fear of difficulties during labour and delivery, convulsions or sawan, harming the baby (such as foetal malformation), and twin pregnancy seemed to trigger many food proscriptions for the pregnant Temiar women, most of which have been passed on from generation to generation.
CONCLUSION: The findings of this study confirm that beliefs about food restrictions are strong among those Temiar living a traditional lifestyle. However, those who have adopted a more modern lifestyle also preserve them to some extent.pregnancy among Orang Asli or indigenous Temiar women in four distinct locations that represent different lifestyle experiences and cultural practices.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Fulltext Fatal and severe box jellyfish stings, including Irukandji stings, in Malaysia, 2000-2010

Lippmann JM, Fenner PJ, Winkel K, Gershwin LA

J Travel Med, 2011 Jul-Aug;18(4):275-81.

PMID: 21722240 DOI: 10.1111/j.1708-8305.2011.00531.x

Jellyfish are a common cause of injury throughout the world, with fatalities and severe systemic events not uncommon after tropical stings. The internet is a recent innovation to gain information on real-time health issues of travel destinations, including Southeast Asia.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

A fever from the tropics

Gherardin T

Aust Fam Physician, 2000 Mar;29(3):259.

PMID: 10785992

Shirley is a 42 year old woman who has rung you 5 days after returning from a 3 week resort holiday in Malaysia and Thailand. You saw her before her trip and administered a hepatitis A vaccine and advised her that she did not require anti malarial drugs as she was only going to large cities and beach resorts. She says she has had a high fever, headache and body aches for several days and that she feels exhausted, but is well enough to come to the surgery. When you see her later that morning, she looks fairly well, although she is moving rather gingerly. She says she has been resting, is drinking lots of fluids, has some anorexia, but no other significant symptoms. Examination reveals a temperature of 38 degrees C and she has a fine morbilliform rash on her body, limbs and neck. There are no other abnormal findings.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel*

Follicular cutaneous larva migrans: a report of three cases and review of the literature

Veraldi S, Persico MC, Francia C, Nazzaro G, Gianotti R

Int J Dermatol, 2013 Mar;52(3):327-30.

PMID: 23414157 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-4632.2012.05723.x

Hookworm-related cutaneous larva migrans (CLM) is characterized clinically by erythematous and slightly raised tracks, located especially on the feet. These tracks may be single or multiple, linear or serpiginous, more or less ramified and intertwined. The length is variable (up to many cm); the width ranges from 1 mm to 4 mm. Tracks are often accompanied by severe pruritus.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel*

Fulltext The interplay of climate, intervention and imported cases as determinants of the 2014 dengue outbreak in Guangzhou

Cheng Q, Jing Q, Spear RC, Marshall JM, Yang Z, Gong P

PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2017 Jun;11(6):e0005701.

PMID: 28640895 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0005701

Dengue is a fast spreading mosquito-borne disease that affects more than half of the population worldwide. An unprecedented outbreak happened in Guangzhou, China in 2014, which contributed 52 percent of all dengue cases that occurred in mainland China between 1990 and 2015. Our previous analysis, based on a deterministic model, concluded that the early timing of the first imported case that triggered local transmission and the excessive rainfall thereafter were the most important determinants of the large final epidemic size in 2014. However, the deterministic model did not allow us to explore the driving force of the early local transmission. Here, we expand the model to include stochastic elements and calculate the successful invasion rate of cases that entered Guangzhou at different times under different climate and intervention scenarios. The conclusion is that the higher number of imported cases in May and June was responsible for the early outbreak instead of climate. Although the excessive rainfall in 2014 did increase the success rate, this effect was offset by the low initial water level caused by interventions in late 2013. The success rate is strongly dependent on mosquito abundance during the recovery period of the imported case, since the first step of a successful invasion is infecting at least one local mosquito. The average final epidemic size of successful invasion decreases exponentially with introduction time, which means if an imported case in early summer initiates the infection process, the final number infected can be extremely large. Therefore, dengue outbreaks occurring in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam in early summer merit greater attention, since the travel volumes between Guangzhou and these countries are large. As the climate changes, destroying mosquito breeding sites in Guangzhou can mitigate the detrimental effects of the probable increase in rainfall in spring and summer.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel*

Soft tissue infections in Belgian rugby players due to Streptococcus pyogenes emm type 81

Quoilin S, Lambion N, Mak R, Denis O, Lammens C, Struelens M, et al.

Euro Surveill, 2006 Dec 21;11(12):E061221.2.

PMID: 17213570

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Pre-travel health preparation for malaria prevention among Hong Kong travellers

Hung KK, Lin AK, Cheng CK, Chan EY, Graham CA

Postgrad Med J, 2015 Mar;91(1073):127-31.

PMID: 25673799 DOI: 10.1136/postgradmedj-2014-133126

Malaria remains a significant cause of travel-related mortality and morbidity. Asians are known to have higher risks because they are less careful in pre-travel health preparations. This study reports on a cohort of travellers to malaria-prone regions examined in a previous study, which explored general levels of pre-travel health preparation.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel/statistics & numerical data*

Fulltext STUDY OF LOCAL TOURIST SATISFACTION IN A RURAL DESTINATION AT MOUNT MULU NATIONAL PARK IN MIRI, SARAWAK

ZALIHA ZAINUDDIN, ZALEHA MOHAMED, HAROLD LOLING

UMT Journal of Undergraduate Research, 2021;3(2):111-118.

MyJurnal

Tourism is associated with leisure and travelling, and is considered one of the fastest growing sectors that contribute significantly to the country’s economy, as well as bringing benefits directly to local communities. The Rural Tourism Master Plan was established in 2001, which defines rural tourism as an attraction that offers visitors the opportunity to experience Malaysia’s traditional culture and heritage away from urban areas. This study focuses on such tourism in the Gunung Mulu National Park, a famous natural park comprising underground caves, virgin rainforests and highlands. This research uses a quantitative approach with a random sampling technique because the procedure to select a unit for inclusion in a sample is much easier, quicker and cheaper. A questionnaire is distributed via Google Form to 500 local tourists who visited the park. The results of this research may be useful in marketing the Gunung Mulu National Park worldwide, besides fine-tuning programmes to attract tourists to the national park.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Changes in the prevalence of influenza-like illness and influenza vaccine uptake among Hajj pilgrims: A 10-year retrospective analysis of data

Alfelali M, Barasheed O, Tashani M, Azeem MI, El Bashir H, Memish ZA, et al.

Vaccine, 2015 May 21;33(22):2562-9.

PMID: 25887084 DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.04.006

Influenza is an important health hazard among Hajj pilgrims. For the last ten years, pilgrims are being recommended to take influenza vaccine before attending Hajj. Vaccination coverage has increased in recent years, but whether there has been any change in the prevalence of influenza-like illness (ILI) is not known. In this analysis, we examined the changes in the rate of ILI against seasonal influenza vaccine uptake among Hajj pilgrims over the last decade.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel

Fulltext Reduced fluoroquinolone susceptibility in Salmonella enterica isolates from travelers, Finland

Lindgren MM, Kotilainen P, Huovinen P, Hurme S, Lukinmaa S, Webber MA, et al.

Emerg Infect Dis, 2009 May;15(5):809-12.

PMID: 19402977 DOI: 10.3201/eid1505.080849

We tested the fluoroquinolone susceptibility of 499 Salmonella enterica isolates collected from travelers returning to Finland during 2003-2007. Among isolates from travelers to Thailand and Malaysia, reduced fluoroquinolone susceptibility decreased from 65% to 22% (p = 0.002). All isolates showing nonclassical quinolone resistance were from travelers to these 2 countries.

Matched MeSH terms: Travel*

Displaying publications 81 - 100 of 266 in total