Document Detail


Travelers' preferences for the treatment and prevention of acute diarrhea.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  19538577     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
BACKGROUND: A survey was designed to assess travelers' willingness to take antibiotic chemoprophylaxis against travelers' diarrhea (TD) or to intervene with antibiotic or symptomatic treatments. METHODS: A brief written questionnaire was administered to clients in North American (United States and Canadian) and European (UK and German) travel clinic waiting rooms to assess length, purpose, and destination of their upcoming trips; their perceived risk of developing TD at their destination; and their preferences for hypothetical treatment or chemoprophylaxis options, which included descriptions, but no mention of brand names, of a systemically absorbed antibiotic based on a fluoroquinolone, a nonabsorbed antibiotic based on rifaximin, and an over-the-counter antidiarrheal similar to loperamide. RESULTS: The 209 UK and German travelers planned significantly longer travel than the 277 US and Canadian travelers (25 vs 15 d, p < 0.001) and correctly recognized high risk of TD more often than the North Americans (81% vs 61%, p < 0.001). More of the North Americans preferred any therapy options compared with the Europeans; only 14% of the North Americans preferred no treatment compared with 29% of the Europeans (p < 0.001). More of the North Americans and the Europeans preferred the nonabsorbed antibiotic than the systemically absorbed antibiotic, regardless of if combined with the antidiarrheal agent. Significantly more of the Europeans preferred not to take antibiotic chemoprophylaxis than North Americans (66% vs 37%, p < 0.001). Among the North Americans, significantly more travelers preferred chemoprophylaxis with the nonabsorbed than the systemic antibiotic (45% vs 33%, p= 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: Among the relatively small groups of travelers studied, the UK and German travelers were more cognizant of TD risk than US and Canadian travelers. The Europeans were less inclined to take chemoprophylaxis or treatment. Both groups preferred treatment or prophylaxis with the nonabsorbed antibiotic over the systemically absorbed antibiotic or the antidiarrheal agent.
Authors:
Charles D Ericsson; Nicolas A Melgarejo; Tomas Jelinek; Anne McCarthy;
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't     Date:  2009-05-05
Journal Detail:
Title:  Journal of travel medicine     Volume:  16     ISSN:  1708-8305     ISO Abbreviation:  J Travel Med     Publication Date:    2009 May-Jun
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2009-06-22     Completed Date:  2009-09-14     Revised Date:  2010-06-17    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  9434456     Medline TA:  J Travel Med     Country:  England    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  172-8     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA. charles.d.ericsson@uth.tmc.edu
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use*
Canada
Diarrhea / drug therapy,  prevention & control*,  psychology*
Female
Germany
Great Britain
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice*
Health Surveys
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Questionnaires
Travel*
United States
Young Adult
Chemical
Reg. No./Substance:
0/Anti-Bacterial Agents
Comments/Corrections
Erratum In:
J Travel Med. 2010 May-Jun;17(3):181

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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