Center City Travel Medicine

Passport Health is in the heart of Center City Philadelphia. Call or click today for an appointment 215-491-1111 www.passporthealthphilly.com

Passport Health of Greater Philadelphia is a Proud ISTM Member

When planning an international trip please remember the following.

Over 700 million travellers cross international borders annually. However, studies suggest that only a very small percent seek pre-travel health advice, and typically from practitioners who are ill equipped to provide current and accurate information. Travel medicine has become increasingly complex due to dynamic changes in global infectious disease epidemiology, changing patterns of drug resistance, and a rise in the number of travellers with chronic health conditions.

Passport Health of Greater Philadelphia is a Proud ISTM Member.
call or click us 800-741-0504
http://www.passporthealthusa.com/locations/pa/philadelphia/481/

Passport Health of Philadelphia has a new website!

Passport Health in the Greater Philadelphia has a new website.

We are your one stop source for pre departure travel immunizations.

Please click us and have a look around.

http://www.passporthealthusa.com/locations/pa/philadelphia/481/

Call us when you need us 800-741-0504

Passport Health and the WTC of Philadelphia

Representatives from Passport Health of Philadelphia attended the Philadelphia International Showcase. Recognized as the region’s leading international business reception and networking event, Showcase brings together the international business, diplomatic, and academic communities to “showcase” the international vitality of the region and celebrate Greater Philadelphia as a world-class region and international business destination.
The keynote presentation was given by State Senator Mike Brubaker. Senator Brubaker is recognized nationally and within the State as a strong advocate for international trade. He created and serves as chairman of the PA Senate International Commerce Caucus and was recently appointed to serve as co-chair of the Council of State Government’s International Committee.
When your company is planning to send employees on international business trips, make the first stop on their itinerary Passport Health to ensure a safe and healthy journey.

Good Health, Don't forget to take it with you!

Exciting destinations, exotic foods, engaging customs. . . International travel, whether for personal or business reasons, can be challenging if you are not prepared. Disease, illness, crime, and injury happen unexpectedly to even the most experienced traveler. Planning for good health on an international trip is as important as buying tickets or obtaining a visa and passport. That is why Passport Health's mission is to provide information, travel vaccines, and travel medications for you, the international traveler.

Why Passport Health?

First Class Medical Care for Travel Anywhere

Passport Health is the largest provider of travel medical services in the United States with convenient locations nationwide. Whether you are traveling for business or pleasure we can prepare you for your trip with destination-specific travel information, immunizations, travel shots, specialty travel products, and international travel health insurance in all our travel clinics.


Good Health. . . Don't Forget to Take It With You!

Exciting destinations, exotic foods, engaging customs. . . International travel, whether for personal or business reasons, can be challenging if you are not prepared. Disease, illness, crime, and injury happen unexpectedly to even the most experienced traveler. Planning for good health on an international trip is as important as buying tickets or obtaining a visa and passport. That is why Passport Health's mission is to provide information, travel vaccines, and travel medications for you, the international traveler.

Passport Health is a leading provider of travel health information and immunizations for international travelers, major corporations, universities and other international organizations. Our nationwide staff is comprised of professionals that include board-certified physicians and registered nurses who have completed rigorous training in the field of travel medicine and immunology. We are a state certified Yellow Fever vaccine provider.

Protect your own health while on your mission trip

As a mission, volunteer or intercountry adoption traveler, you will be exposed to more risks than the average international vacationer. Typically you will be traveling to the more remote areas of underdeveloped countries. The sanitation, food preparations and health care will be sub-standard to what you are familiar with at home. Even the most careful traveler can become ill.
Expert Support for Mission or Volunteer Coordinators,
Team Leaders and Members
When planning a mission trip, it is important to include pre-trip medical preparations in your planning and budgeting. Passport Health's Travel Medicine Specialists will review with you the immunizations required and recommended for the area you will be visiting, based on the time of year, length of stay and your activities while you are there. Passport Health utilizes advice from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the US Department of State, the world's leaders in all areas of disease, outbreaks, warnings and knowledge of immunizations. Recommendations and requirements are constantly updated. At Passport Health, we monitor these conditions daily to ensure we give the best possible information to our travelers.

Many organizations do not include the upfront costs of immunizations in their planning, or ignore them all together. Team members should be up to date on all routine adult immunizations, such as Tetanus/Diphtheria, Hepatitis A and B, Measles/Mumps/Rubella, to name a few. This is in addition to the destination-specific travel immunizations needed. It is dangerous to ignore the importance of being immunized. Don't be fooled by 'No one got sick last time we traveled there.' The immunization cost is a fraction of what it will cost if just one person becomes sick or injured.

Passport Health can tailor a program and price options that fit your groups' needs and budget. It will include the information, routine and travel immunizations, medications and specialty travel health products.

Travelers receiving immunizations from Passport Health will receive an official immunization record to keep with his or her travel documents.

Passport Health also offers hard to find specialty travel health products. Many mission groups strongly encourage their team members to consider such products as they know they are some of the best on the market and not available once they've reached their destination.

The work performed by mission and volunteer travelers all over the world is so important and the rewards so fulfilling, illness or injury should not hinder a team's or individual member's ability to complete their assignment.

Experienced coordinators know proper planning for small or large groups means working early to get team members prepared. Passport Health is your one stop travel health planning partner.

Call us today for more infromation 215-491-1111 or 800-741-0504
www.passporthealthphilly.com

Traveler Alert! Malaria Protection

Malaria in humans is caused by one of four protozoan species. All species are transmitted by the bite of an infected female mosquito. Occasionally Malaria transmission occurs by blood transfusion or congenitally from mother to fetus.

Signs and Symptoms of Malaria
Malaria is characterized by fever and flu-like symptoms, including chills, headache, body aches and fatigue; these symptoms may occur at intervals. Malaria may be associated with anemia and jaundice, and may cause kidney failure, coma and death. Deaths due to Malaria are preventable. The estimated risk of a traveler acquiring Malaria varies markedly from area to area. A Passport Health Travel Medicine Specialist will help you to determine your risk and Malaria prevention measures.

Protective Measures Against Malaria
Because no currently available drug regimen guarantees 100\% protection against Malaria, prevention of infection requires taking antimalarial medication as directed in addition to prevention of mosquito bites. Mosquitoes that carry Malaria have nocturnal feeding habits, thus Malaria transmission occurs primarily between dusk and dawn. Measures to reduce mosquito contact during critical hours include:

•Remaining in well-screened or air conditioned areas
•Using mosquito nets treated with Permethrin
•Wearing clothing that covers most of the body and has been treated with Permethrin
•Using insect repellents containing appropriate levels of DEET
•Using insecticides in living and sleeping areas where appropriate
Passport Health carries CDC and WHO recommended insect repellents for purchase.

Antimalarial Drugs
Most antimalarials act in the bloodstream to suppress clinical symptoms by inhibiting parasite development in red blood cells. Regardless of duration of stay in a Malarious area, antimalarials should be taken by all travelers. The regime for all Malaria medications include the need to be taken before arrival, during the visit, and after departure from a Malaria risk area. This approach assures adequate blood levels of the drug, enables the traveler to switch to another drug in the event of side effects and gets the traveler in the habit of taking the drug on a regular basis. Because antimalarials do not actually prevent the disease, continued dosing with antimalarials after departure from an endemic area ensures that the drug will kill any lingering parasites. A Passport Health Travel Medicine Specialist will counsel you on recommended antimalaria medications specific to your travel destination. Antimalaria medications may be prescribed for you by the Travel Medicine Specialist and many locations may have antimalaria medications available for purchase.

Follow-Up
Regardless of the drug regimen used, it is still possible to contract Malaria during travel and to become ill following departure from a malarious area. Travelers should seek medical attention as soon as possible if a fever illness develops during a trip or the first year following exposure. Malaria may be fatal if treatment is delayed.

So, if you are asking yourself, "what travel shots do I need? or where to get the Malaria vaccine", call 215-491-1111 for your appointment today
www.passporthealthpilly.com

Be protected from hepatitis A or hepatitis B infection

What is TWINRIX?
TWINRIX is a vaccine for adults 18 years of age or older. It is injected into your upper arm muscle. It is used to help protect against hepatitis A and hepatitis B infections, which can affect the liver. TWINRIX may not fully protect everyone who receives the vaccine, especially those with immune system disorders. TWINRIX is not used for the “treatment” of hepatitis A or hepatitis B.
Who should get TWINRIX?
There are many things that could put you at risk for either hepatitis A or hepatitis B. You should talk to a healthcare provider to find out more.
How does TWINRIX work?
TWINRIX works by causing the body to produce its own protection (antibodies) that prevent hepatitis A and hepatitis B virus infection. The vaccine cannot give you a hepatitis A or hepatitis B infection.
What are the benefits of using TWINRIX?
TWINRIX provides protection against two of the most common forms of hepatitis, hepatitis A and hepatitis B, through a single vaccine series. You can get separate shots for hepatitis A and hepatitis B, but that would mean a total of 5 shots in 4 visits to a healthcare provider. With the standard schedule for TWINRIX, you only need 3 shots in 3 visits to Passport Health

Humanitarian Aid Travel Alerts

March 11, 2011 Japan was hit by an 8.9 earthquake and tsunami. Flood waters and standing waters pose various risks, including infectious diseases, chemical hazards, and injuries. Increased incidence of Diarrheal diseases, Tetanus, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Polio, Hepatitis A & B, Meningitis, and Measles, Mumps, Rubella can arise after a natural disaster. Radiation is also a risk in Japan now. The adverse health effects of radiation exposure can range from mild effects, such as skin reddening, to serious effects such as cancer and death, depending on the amount of radiation absorbed by the body, the type of radiation, the route of exposure, and the length of time a person was exposed. Travelers should be aware and properly protected before traveling to Japan. In January 2010, Haiti was hit by a 7.0 earthquake. It is estimated that 230,000 people died and 300,000 people were injured. Cholera was first detected in October 2010, and to date 3759 deaths have been reported. The outbreak is expected to continue for a period of years unless the current poor water and sanitation conditions are resolved. Increased incidence of Tetanus, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Polio, Hepatitis A & B, Meningitis, Tuberculosis and Measles, Mumps, Rubella have been reported. Even before the earthquake, Haiti had the highest tuberculosis rate in the Americas. In normal times, Haiti sees about 30,000 new cases of tuberculosis each year. Dengue Fever and Malaria are both endemic in Haiti. Travelers should be aware and properly protected against present diseases in Haiti.

Call or click Passport Health today
800-741-0504
http://www.passporthealthusa.com/locations/pa/philadelphia/481/

YELLOW FEVER What is it?

Yellow Fever is preventable by a safe, effective vaccine. International regulations require proof of Yellow Fever vaccination for travel to and from certain countries. For purposes of international travel, Yellow Fever vaccine must be approved by the World Health Organization and administered by an approved Yellow Fever Vaccination Center. Passport Health is an approved Yellow Fever Vaccination Center. After obtaining the vaccine you will receive an International Certificate of Vaccination (ICV) completed, signed and validated with the official stamp. Because Yellow Fever vaccine is very safe and the disease risk is high, the CDC recommends this vaccine for adults and children over 9 months who will be traveling to high-risk areas.

Reactions to the vaccine are generally mild. Two percent to five percent of vaccines have mild headaches, body aches and a low-grade fever, or other minor symptoms several days after vaccination. Immediate hypersensitivity reactions, such as rash, are uncommon and occur mostly in persons with a history of egg allergy.

Protection Against Yellow Fever
It is important to remember barrier methods, as there may still be a risk of contracting other mosquito-borne illnesses. Passport Health's controlled release insect repellent contains DEET in the appropriate concentrations for use on exposed body parts. Travelers should reduce skin exposure and use mosquito netting whilst asleep. Permethrin should be applied to clothing and netting for added protection.

http://www.passporthealthusa.com/locations/pa/philadelphia/481/
215-491-1111 or 800-741-0504