Making Sightseeing Enquiries First to Ensure a Worry Free Travel.

        　　In the summer tourist season, whether it is to buy a ticket to fly abroad to experience different customs, or to visit an alpine island to get close to nature, it is a good way to reward oneself for relieving pressure. However, in the new environment where people are not familiar with life, if they encounter incompatibility and physical discomfort, they will greatly reduce the interest of tourism. Moreover, if Taiwan's medical treatment is not convenient in foreign countries, if not handled in time, they may also endanger their health. This issue of "Health Column" specially shares the "International Tourism Medical Clinic" service, which is a health consultant that people planning to go abroad can not be ignorant of.

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        The concept of "International Tourism Medical Clinic" is different from that of "illness" in general. It serves "healthy people who are going abroad". "Tourism Medicine" refers to all health issues related to tourism, including epidemiological analysis of destination and individual medical consultation, vaccination and recommendations (including the connection of vaccination), health examination for studying abroad and working, preparation and consultation of standing drugs, disease assessment and treatment for returnees. Therapy and tracking... And so on. In short, any health problems related to tourism can be consulted in the outpatient department of tourism medicine. Doctors will recommend whether to prescribe drugs or vaccines according to your condition, the area you want to go to, the epidemic diseases and risks, especially in some special types of areas, due to the situation in Taiwan. Geographical, climatic and disease characteristics vary greatly. It is suggested that consultation and preventive medication should be initiated in the outpatient department of tourism medicine before departure, such as:
         1. Alpine mountains over 2500 meters above sea level
         Because the air in the mountains is thinner and the air pressure is lower, people will unconsciously breathe faster, which will lead to respiratory alkalosis, and even lead to pulmonary edema, brain edema and acute mountain sickness in severe cases. If the travel itinerary includes alpine areas, it is suggested to go to the outpatient clinic of tourism medicine first to assess whether the physical condition is suitable for the alpine environment. Does the content of the trip need to be adjusted according to the physical condition? If the doctor considers it necessary, he can prescribe preventive medication for alpine disease in the outpatient clinic. At the same time, he can further understand what kind of symptoms may be the onset of Alpine disease and how to deal with it.

        2. Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central and South America
         It is suggested that the website of the Disease Control Department of the Ministry of Health and Welfare be consulted first to find out if there is a malaria epidemic or risk of infection in the area. Malaria is mainly caused by mosquito bites and then by malaria parasite infection. The main symptoms are fever, chills and tremor, followed by cold sweat, headache, muscle pain, arthralgia, nausea, vomiting and fatigue. If not properly treated, intermittent or fatigue may occur in a few days. Periodic chills and tremors, fever and sweating may lead to splenomegaly, jaundice, shock, liver and kidney failure, pulmonary edema, acute brain lesions and coma. If you go to the epidemic area, besides doing a good job of mosquito control measures, it is also recommended that at least one month before departure, malaria prevention drugs should be established in the outpatient clinic of tourism medicine in order to reduce the risk of infection.
        
         3. Areas with poor sanitary environment
         As the saying goes, "sickness comes from the mouth", you must wash your hands frequently and pay attention to the hygiene of the water source or food. "Traveler diarrhea" is also a condition that often disturbs the interest of tourism. For several days, feces can not be formed and discharged, and accompanied by abdominal spasmodic pain, nausea, fever, flatulence and even bloody stool. The common pathogens are bacteria and viruses, which are common in travel to Asia (except Japan), the Middle East, Africa, Mexico and Central and South America. Generally speaking, people with normal immunity can recover by themselves without taking special antimicrobial drugs, but for the sake of insurance, it is still recommended to go to the outpatient clinic of tourism medicine to open a stomach medicine reserve before departure. If unfortunately, the degree and impact of discomfort can be minimized.
        
         In addition, when traveling to developing or undeveloped countries, it is also recommended to visit the CDC website of the Ministry of Health and Welfare to check whether hepatitis A is prevalent in the region. Hepatitis A virus is transmitted by diet and drinking water. After infection in adults, symptoms may include fever, chills and weakness. Other symptoms such as loss of appetite, nausea, jaundice (yellow eyes and skin), dark urine, light stool, abdominal pain and fatigue are also common. There was a period of epidemic in Taiwan in the early stage. After the improvement of sanitation conditions, the number of cases of infection has decreased dramatically. Therefore, there is no anti-hepatitis A virus antibody among the general public. If you go to areas where hepatitis A is prevalent, it is difficult to ensure the hygiene of diet. It is recommended that you consult the outpatient clinic of tourism medicine at least one month before your departure. Whether hepatitis A vaccine is suitable for vaccination or not, after one dose, more than 95% of them can produce protective antibodies. After two doses, they can provide more than 20 years of protection, but the interval between the two doses should be at least six months. Although hepatitis A, unlike hepatitis B or C, can cause chronic banding or liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, there are still a few people (<0.5%) who can cause fulminant hepatitis and death, especially elderly patients, who have chronic infection or banding of hepatitis B or C, are more likely to lead to fulminant hepatitis after getting hepatitis A. Therefore, we should be more vigilant.
        
        
                 In order to make the consultation more efficient and close to their own situation, remember to do the following homework before going to the outpatient clinic of tourism medicine:
         1. Prepare your own health history, medication history and vaccination history to facilitate doctors to quickly grasp your situation and make the most appropriate assessment.
         2. Go to the website of the CDC of the Ministry of Health and Welfare to inquire about the epidemic situation prevailing in the area and whether there are any vaccines recommended for use. At present, there is a "general public version" on the website, which is very simple and easy to understand, thus greatly reducing the time of on-site inquiry.
        
         Finally, I would like to remind you that no matter where you plan to travel, you should bear in mind the following principles, and make all preparations before traveling, so that you can have a healthy and safe trip.
         1. Pay attention to dietary hygiene, drinking water must be boiled first, do not drink raw, raw food.
         2. Keep good personal hygiene habits and wash your hands correctly.
         3. Pay attention to environmental hygiene, especially toilet and kitchen hygiene.