I'm not talking about Antrax or Smallpox here. I'm talking about "classical" vaccines like tetanus and diphtheria.

People think you should get a vaccine for tetanus only after you step on a rusty nail or you injure yourself in the field but during a disaster like Katrina this would certainly not be possible. After leafing through the Canadian immunization guide I found out that they recommend that you get a vaccine against tetanus and diphtheria every 10 years. So I'm planning on getting my immunizations up to date.

Another pre-exposure vaccine that looks important for outdoor enthusiasts is Rabies which is facultative according to the Canadian guide. Are you immunized against it? With all the pets stranded in NO or having to sleep in unusual open air places there's a small risk of being bitten by a bat with rabies for exemple. Do you think it is worth getting immunized against rabies?

Apart from biological terrorist attacks related vaccines and travelers related vaccines, what would be useful ones to get for disaster preparedness and wilderness survival? Cholera looks like a useful one in a flooded situation but I guess if you are wary about the water and food you take you don't need a vaccine against it. Any thoughts, comments, informations?

Thanks
François

I hadn't thought of that. What's a comprehensive list of vaccinations and other medical maintenance that could and should be done before something like this?

I guess it's obvious, but the better shape you're in, the better you'll be able to cope with whatever's happening. Eat right, exercise, blah, blah. It's boring, sweaty unpleasant and unimportant until you have to walk out 10+ miles because you no longer have a house or a car and the buses aren't running. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Do today what others won't, so you can do tomorrow what others can't.

In this event, Hepatitus is a must. There are several vaccines for Hep a and Hep B, but Hep C is a concern, and there is no approved vaccine. In this latitude, sure, tet and dip, but also now typhoid, yellow fever and typhus. Go to the state department web site and look at recomended vaccinations for travel to 3rd world tropical countries.

You cannot vaccinate against e-coli, exactly, but there is a vaccine out there, now available only for health care workers, that provides limited protection.

CDC is worried about malaria, for what it's worth.

Sorry. I didn't reply precisely. Goto http://www.cdc.gov/node.do/id/0900f3ec8005df1f
for a concise list.

Ow. Owowowow. Dang.

I don't like needles to start with. For that many shots... can I at least get a local? <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Interesting that they are still quoting the "every ten years" for tetanus vaccination. Here it used to be every 5 years, but I recently went for a booster due to an upcoming trip and was told that they now consider you protected for life if you have had 5 tetanus vaccinations.

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/recs/adult-schedule.htm

Vaccines for adults include
  Tetanus-Diphtheria Vaccine (all adults, every 10 years)
  Influenza (Flu) Vaccine (adults 50 and older)
  Pneumococcal Vaccine (adults 65 and older)
  Hepatitis B Vaccine (adults at risk)
  Measles-Mumps-Rubella (MMR) Vaccine (susceptible adults)
  Varicella (chickenpox) Vaccine (susceptible adults)
  Vaccines for travelers (see CDC travel web site for specifics)



   

I can't seem to go that long w/o getting hurt, and every time I'm in an ER they stick me again.

Yet I found this :

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/publications/vis/vis-rabies.pdf

It says that there's a vaccine made from killed rabies virus.

I know Louis Pasteur is the guy who discovered the first antirabies treatment. I will talk about what you said when I go for my immunization update. Thanks for the info.

Frankie

Check out the CDC web site on rabies vaccine in humans:

CDC Rabies Vaccine in Humans

CDC Rabies Vaccine Info

Pete