Sunday, September 26, 2010

Bali tourists bring rabies risk home

Street dogs on Kuta beach in Bali.

EPA / MADE NAGI ©

    Travel medicine clinics have reported a doubling this year in the number of tourists returning from Bali who need treatment for potential exposure to rabies because of bites from animals, mostly dogs.

    Doctors and travel health experts are also reporting a surge in gastroenteritis and the mosquito-borne dengue fever in Bali in the past 18 months, raising concerns about poor public health standards on the holiday island.

    The WA Health Department recently issued a warning to travellers returning from Bali to be on alert for signs of the bacterial infection Legionnaires' disease, after two West Australians and a Victorian became infected.

    The disease spreads when people inhale droplets of contaminated water from air-conditioning units, spas and the popular misting sprays found in hot climates.

    In July, the department warned tourists about health risks from a range of infections, including rabies and dengue fever, and the gastroenteritis illnesses commonly known as Bali belly.

    On top of that, sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhoea and chlamydia are thought to be rife.

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