DUKORAL for Traveller's Diarrhea/Cholera ??

[sberdej]

Hello All!! I am a Canadian that is living in Seoul at the moment, but will be doing some traveling to India soon. I was looking into taking Dukoral, but don't know if it's available outside of north america and europe. I've been looking, but so far it looks like you can't get it in Asia yet. Getting medication sent here usually gets stuck at customs. Any ideas? Any alternatives?

Thanks!

[shesparkle]

Never heard of the stuff until this forum, so never taken it. I've only got ill on one trip so far, Honduras, and got the runs 3-4 times in 4 weeks! Only for a day each time, so it could have been worse. Annoying that it was the trip I was most concerned about handwashing and using alcohol gel on... I definitely think there is something in the small exposure helping theory.

Pepto bismol is ace though, it sooths and calms rather than just bunging you up like immodium. Definitely a convert (and judging by the size bottles they had of it in Honduras, it's a staple item even for locals!)

[jocgorey]

I mentioned DUKORAL to a Doctor friend and he hadn't heard of it. Is it available in europe i.e. Ireland . I normally take imodium and motilium

[JaliscoJudy]

I mentioned DUKORAL to a Doctor friend and he hadn't heard of it. Is it available in europe i.e. Ireland . I normally take imodium and motilium

Hmm.

Looks like it was approved for use in the UK in 2004:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3729109.stm

This site discusses Dukoral in depth, including uses and possible side effects:

http://emc.medicines.org.uk/emc/assets/ ... ntID=14463

[Caebru]

I used Dukoral last year on a 2 month trip through South America: Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina & Brazil and again this year on a 2 month trip through Asia: Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia & China. I got it at the local health clinic in Alberta, Canada. I had absolutely no side effects at all and had no problems with diarrhea on either trip (though I always carry Immodium along just in case).

Doug

[janebockman]

Hi. I use Dukoral for all my overseas trips. It is used as an adjunct agent with proper health precautions (ie: no ice or unpeeled veg, hand washing, etc.) It is efficacious taken in the right time frame and as directed. It is readily available in Canada.

[lyntay]

Hi, my sister and I just got back from a trip to Peru. She used Dukoral and I used Flouristor. I chose flouristor as Peru is not high risk for cholera and flouristor targets more parasites than the e-coli parasite. It is a probiotic and I had to take one pill in the morning and one in the afternoon. I did not get sick, but my sister, who took Dukoral, did. Flouristor was recommended to me by a friend who went to Egypt at xmas with a group. Her and her husband were the only ones who took it while the others took dukoral. They were the only ones not to get sick.

[cantstoptravel]

Hi,
I have a very sensitive stomach and have taking this stuff for my last trips. One that included Africa. This works wonders for me. It was recommended by the doctor and his nurse who happens to be his wife at my local travel clinic. They lived in several countries in Africa and have seen there fair share of desease including cholera. Dukoral was developed for that porpose.
Keep in mind that not all medecines work the same on every individual. We all metabolise things differently. There is a possibility that it will not work, so take an alternative for plan B.

[Panda3035]

i took it before i went to china and i actually still had problems. I felt so sick for the first week there! I'm guessing because of the medicince, i would not do any bowel movement and felt like barfing all the time. Plus i didn't have any gravol since i do not get car sick which could have helped with the barfing feeling.

[Zuleika]

Im not sure about any of these medicines as there are many many bugs out there that will cause D and V and each of these meds are effective against a few but nowhere all of these stomach bugs. Also, can the medicines can make you feel bit poorly from what i have been reading?
If people are susceptible to stomach bugs and find they help then that is very good.
But the thing to do is to remember to never be too blaise about hand washing, hygiene and what you eat/drink. Dont think you are protected just because you took some medicines!!!
This is probably easy for me to say because luckily it seems i have a strong stomach!! But my hand sanitizer alco - gel is never far from my reach!

[wolfcreek1]

We just completed a 6 wk trip to Peru and Ecudor and we chose not to take "DUKAROL"in part because of the cost and in the past we had travelled extensively and never had any problems.Well it was a different story on our trip to Puna and Lake Titticcaca where 6 of us (out of 12 travllers) got dysentry and a number of us couldn't do the trek into Machu Pucca .We really regretted not taking advantage of "Dukoral" and strongly recommend that any one going into this type of enviroment take it,!!!!

[BagsPacked]

My travelling companion took Dukoral before a trip to Egypt last year but I did not. I was healthy the whole time and he got really sick towards the end of our trip and again for a few days when we got back home. We ate/drank almost the same things and he was in general even more cautious than I was (like, I accidentally rinsed my toothbrush in tap water out of habit and didn't worry about it). We figure he got sick from a glass of fresh juice in a restaurant that must have had tap water added.
I guess he might have been more sick if he hadn't taken the Dukoral, but it seems to me that just taking precautions is the best prevention.
Also, rehydration salts seemed to help better and faster than Immodium. Got him feeling well enough to at least make it to the Pyramids which we thought we might have to miss!

[nursesara]

I took it before i went to mexico for a month, i still got realllllllllly sick twice... both times from american fast food places ( we were told to eat there because they have stricter guidlines for food safety)
but im using it again for costa rica.. its worth a shot if it saves one lost night in the bathroom..

[coqui14]

If you read the page JaliscoJudy recommended, you find out that DUKORAL is a vaccination againt Chlolera and it won't protect you against anything else. Travelers diarrhea is due to many other factors, mostly bacterial and this drug won't help you. You can see the many cases post in here were peopel got sick. As GAP travelers we have to be aware of the environment. By using drugs we are contaminating the environment more than ever now. Concentrations of many drugs in drinking water are increasing exponentially in the last years due to the unnecessary and excesive uses. Lets be smart travelers, get informed and make the best decision of what to take.

[GAP4Me]

Dukoral is effective against Cholera and Traveller's Diarrhea. Here is a link to the Dukoral brochure:
http://www.travellersdiarrhea.com/Home/docs/DUKORAL_PatientBrochure_EN.pdf
I've used it on several trips and have not gotten sick. As far as I'm concerned it works. Once you have taken the full dosage, its good for 5 years with a booster. I suggest anyone thinking of a trip to an area where the water isn't safe to drink, consult a doctor for advice.
Whatever you do don't listen to the so called "experts" around here for something important like your health.