Protection against tropical diseases
You can contract diseases such as malaria, dengue (dengue fever), yellow fever or zika, but also a worm infection or rabies (rabies). Some tropical diseases start with such harmless symptoms that you don’t even realize you are sick. Malaria, for example, is characterized by a starting flu.
It is also possible that the disease does not manifest itself immediately and that you only get symptoms years later. But it is even better to take measures to minimize the risk of contamination so that you can enjoy your trip without any worries. It is therefore always wise to report a visit to tropical countries to your doctor. Even though this may have been a while ago.
There are hospitals in the Netherlands that have a special tropical department where you can go if you suspect a tropical disease and also for treatment.
Malaria
Malaria is caused by parasites. These can enter the body via a mosquito bite. Malaria causes fever, headache, chills, excessive sweating and muscle pain. Malaria occurs to a limited extent in the Netherlands. These are people who contracted the disease in the (sub) tropics. Fun fact: Since 1970, the Netherlands has been officially declared malaria free by the WHO.
Dengue
Dengue, also called dengue fever, is an infectious disease caused by a virus. The virus occurs in (sub) tropical areas and is transmitted by mosquitoes. Dengue is common in people who have visited countries where the disease occurs.
Gele koorts
Gele koorts is een tropische ziekte die wordt veroorzaakt door het gelekoortsvirus. Het virus wordt overgedragen door de beet van tropische muggen. Een uitbraak van deze ziekte verloopt altijd via de gelekoortsmug (Aedes aegypti). Gele koorts komt alleen voor in bepaalde tropische regio’s van Afrika en Zuid-Amerika.
Zika
The Zika virus is spread by the yellow fever mosquito or dengue mosquito. This mosquito does not occur naturally in the Netherlands. The disease (Zika fever) is usually quite mild. Most people don’t get any complaints at all. It has now been scientifically proven that an infection during pregnancy can be harmful to the unborn child.
West Nile Disease
The West Nile virus is transmitted by mosquitoes and occurs mainly among migratory birds, but mammals and humans can also be affected by this disease. The disease is spread by infected mosquitoes, including the Western European house mosquito and the tiger mosquito.