Pakistan - Getting Sick

There are good medical facilities in all major towns in Pakistan. You may need it after your first fly-blown kabobfest. Pakistan may not be the dirtiest place in the world, but it is enough to make some Siberian mining towns look positively pristine. Expect to get the runs, unless you have a PVC gastrointestinal tract. Some folks go gaga over the spicy food, and other folks end up crouched over a grubby pit toilet learning the hard way that fiery spices and peppers burn as bad going out as they do going down. Take the normal precautions you would take in any third-world country and carry medicine for diarrhea.

You need proof of a cholera vaccination if arriving from infected areas. You should get a typhoid shot and take malaria prophylaxis. Yellow fever vaccination and certificate are required if you have visited a country in the endemic zone recently.

Inoculations against yellow fever and cholera are required for visitors arriving in Pakistan within five days after leaving or transiting infected areas. In addition, immunizations against typhoid, polio and meningitis are recommended, as are prophylactic antimalarial drugs. Malaria is present throughout Pakistan at altitudes below 2,000 meters. Remember, even if you are heading straight for the mountains, you can still get bitten in the airport waiting lounge in Karachi. Hepatitis and tetanus are further health risks in Pakistan, as are amoebic dysentery and worms. Bilharzia (schistosomiasis) and elephantiasis (filariasis) are also endemic diseases, although not widespread. Follow the usual precautions for countries with poor sanitation. Military hospitals, frequently open to fee-paying local civilians and foreigners, often provide the best facilities.