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This could be your once in a lifetime trip, so getting the right injections needed for Kenya should be integral to planning your trip. Kenya is famous for its wildlife and common destinations include the world renowned Maasai Mara and Amboseli national parks. You may also want to finish off your wildlife safari relaxing for a few days on a beach in Mombasa. On the other hand, you might be travelling for business to attend a conference for a few days in Nairobi, the capital. The risks you’re exposed to in these destinations are different, so the vaccines needed for Kenya will vary depending on your itinerary. For the national parks we would recommend the yellow fever vaccination, but is not usually required for Nairobi and Mombasa. If you’re travelling to remote areas or for longer periods of time then the inoculations for Kenya may include rabies, meningitis ACWY, cholera and hepatitis B. Remember you should also be up to date with your childhood immunisations, such as tetanus, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR vaccine). Your GP might be able to help you with this as these would also be considered as routine travel jabs for Kenya. You might find that trying to work out what vaccines you need for your trip to Kenya quite confusing. This is because it can be! We recommend booking a risk assessment based on you as an individual, and your itinerary. This is where Health Klinix can help, we’ll make sure that you meet your Kenya vaccine requirements and travel safely. To give you an idea of the vaccines you might need for Kenya, take a look at the useful table below.
What travel vaccinations do I need for Kenya?
Dr Ravi Gowda, Consultant in Infectious Diseases or one of his highly trained clinical colleagues will be looking after your vaccine requirements. Find out more about the Health Klinix team.
Who will be providing your travel injections for Kenya?
Just remember it’s not all about having jabs for Kenya. Kenya does have regular outbreaks of cholera every year, so you might need to protect you and your family, especially when visiting friends and relatives.
Prevention of cholera:
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Make sure you have access to safe food and water. Take a look at the Fit for Travel website for more information
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Make sure you have the cholera vaccine, this is a safe oral vaccine and so no jabs are required
Dr Gowda's top tip for travel to Kenya
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Frequently asked questions
This really depends on the vaccination. The yellow fever vaccine is now lifelong whereas cholera needs to be boosted every 2 years.
Although you can still have vaccinations at the last minute, we prefer you contact us at least 4-6 weeks before you travel. You’ll need time to respond to the vaccines and remember some vaccines have two or three doses over one month.
There’s an increased risk of serious side effects with some vaccines like the yellow fever vaccine if you belong to a specific risk group, for example, if you’re aged over 60 years. Most, however, travel vaccinations are very well tolerated.
We’d strongly recommend that you don’t visit Kenya unless it’s just to Nairobi. This is because malaria can be very severe in pregnancy for both the mother and baby.
Most vaccines can be given to children albeit at lower doses. Some vaccines, like the yellow fever vaccine, have age limits. Please contact us for advice
This depends on the medical problem. The general rule is that there should be a lower threshold to recommend all inactivated vaccines. The yellow fever vaccine is a live weakened vaccine and should not be administered to certain groups of people with specific medical issues. That’s why it’s important you seek specialist expertise before you travel.
You’re generally at high risk of malaria in Kenya and we would recommend you take malaria tablets.
If you’re only travelling to Nairobi or high altitude destinations ( >2500m) we would usually recommend bite avoidance only. However, in some circumstances you may need malaria tablets. Examples include prolonged stay in rural areas, the elderly, those with weakened immune systems or multiple medical problems. So please check with us first.
Recommended malaria tablets for Kenya
Although you may not need malaria tablets in Nairobi, you’ll need malaria prevention for many other areas and it’s still important that you are aware of the risk of malaria. Make sure you avoid mosquito bites by using insect repellent and sleeping under mosquito nets. Just remember malaria tablets are not 100% effective and you'll therefore need to take additional precautions.
In most cases you will need malaria tablets for Kenya, so we’ve created a helpful table as a guide (see below).
Malaria risk map for Kenya
travelhealthpro.org.uk and ACMP
You’re at risk of yellow fever in some parts of this country. If you’re going to Tsavo East, Tsavo West, and Masai Mara game reserves, and Lake Nakuru national park, we would recommend yellow fever vaccination.
If you're only going to the Northeastern provinces then we would generally not recommend yellow fever vaccination but please be aware that there have been recent outbreaks in this area. What's interesting is that this was not previously a yellow fever affected area, so the disease is emerging in new regions of the country.
With this in mind, it’s vital you should seek up to date information on yellow fever transmission from knowledgeable healthcare professionals. We’re here to help, so just give us a call and ask us for advice, or for more detailed information on yellow fever risk here.
Yellow fever risk map for Kenya
Source: CDC. Use of these images does not constitute its endorsement or recommendation by the CDC
Kenya lies at the heart of Africa with its history going back to the prehistoric era. It's famous for its lush, fertile highlands, beautiful beaches and its wide range of wildlife. The country has managed to protect its wildlife in the world famous Maasai Mara and Tsavo national parks, both home to the ‘big five’ animals; the lion, leopard, wild buffalo, elephant and the rhinoceros. Alternatively, If you simply want a bit of downtime for some rest and relaxation, why don’t you head to the many beaches Kenya has to offer such as Diani, Watamu and Nyali?
All about Kenya
Additional health advice and risks for Kenya
You may also be at risk of the following diseases:
Kenya vaccine certificate requirements
For specific yellow fever vaccine certificate requirements for Kenya click here
Authors:
Dr Ravi Gowda, Consultant in Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
MBBS, MRCP(UK), DTM&H, MRCGP, DCH, DRCOG, DFFP
Caitlin Lancaster, BSc
Resources: