Beyond Adventure Sports

There were four major illnesses that were reported to me. A few Eco-Challengers were hospitalized for a Dengue-like fever, and some were hospitalized for staph infections. The other problems were giardia and foot rot. Overall, the response from the Eco-Challenge Medical Team was pretty good. They supplied the competitors with medicine to combat Filariasis, or worms that take up residence in the lymphatic systems. They treated several cases of foot rot, and handed out some antibiotics to some athletes who reported in with fever conditions. I have heard of a few athletes that were turned away with just Tylenol, even though they exhibited serious fever condition. I know of at least one of those cases that slipped through ended up in the hospital. Because of that I can only give the Medical team a B- grade. They did a great job with what they accomplished.

Dengue Fever
Several reports showed that some cases of high fever, severe headaches, joint and muscle pain, nausea/vomiting, and rash, ended up in the hospital. The first analysis was dengue fever, but lab tests ended up telling a different story. That nasty little virus that so many of us became familiar with from Borneo, is back. Leptospirosis is commonly confused with dengue fever, typhoid, and sometime malaria. Guess what, it doesn't just come from bat caves. The CDC says, "Human infection occurs through exposure to water or soil contaminated by infected animals and has been associated with canoeing, kayaking, wading, and swimming in contaminated, untreated open water." Hmm? I don't remember a single day that we didn't wade through water in Fiji.
There is not a vaccine for Lepto, but there is a treatment and preventative measure. The CDC recommends, "travelers who might be at increased risk for leptospirosis be advised to consider chemoprophylaxis with doxycycline (200 milligrams orally, once a week), begun 1 to 2 days before exposure and continuing through the period of exposure."