Moving to Ghana Kumasi
Hi all! I accepted a job in kumasi ghana and might be coming by second week next month. I would just like to know if its advisable to take the anti malaria meds during my stay in kumasi? I will be staying for about 2yrs. If so, is there a side effect on this meds?
Thank you.
ArBie,
I normally spend about six months of the year in Ghana and I stopped taking anti-malaria meds a few years ago, with no ill-effects. But then I never seem to get bitten by mosquitoes.
All meds have side effects, with anti-malaria meds I think the main risks are otitis and/or tinnitus. But I'm neither a doctor nor a pharmacist: "read the instructions in the package, or ask your doctor or pharmacist", to quote the standard phrase.
I don't know any Ghanaians who regularly take anti-malaria meds, it seems they prefer to deal with it when they get it.
I googled "malaria philippines" and got a list of risk areas: if you live in one of them and don't now take anti-malaria meds, why would you want to take them in Ghana?
HTH
Rod
P. S. bear in mind that dengue fever is also transmitted by mosquitoes
Hi Rod, thank you for your reply. Very much appreciated.
Well, I read in one forum (ghana forum), that an expat took anti malaria med before coming to ghana, and during her stay, so I was wondering if its really necessary. Yes, there is malaria in the philippines but it is not prevalent here like how it is in Ghana.
My concern actually rooted from having dengue 2mos ago almost spent Christmas in the hospital thats why Im kinda worried and would like to take preventive measure.
Hi ArBie,
if you had a "close brush" with dengue you are right to be cautious. They say malaria stays in your blood once you have had it. Ghanaians say malaria is their constant companion, they have learned to live with it.
On the other hand I was thinking two years is a long time to be popping pills that may be doing you harm in another way.
The other thing is that you need to take a close look at what to choose. A colleague on my first "tours" in Ghana (Barclays Bank, 1967-1970) fell into a trap with the weekly kind (known as "Sunday-Sunday" in Ghana): Martin was a big guy, solid muscle, little fat, and his doctor in the UK prescribed one Sunday-Sunday pill when it should have been two, or better still the daily sort. Unfortunately Martin got malaria.
At the time I was on (daily) Paludrine for one 18-month "tour" and then a 15-month one, and didn't get malaria.
When I started re-visiting Ghana for longer and longer periods from 2013 onward I was on daily pills, but not Paludrine, which is no longer effective, they told me (that's the other thing to watch: apparently the mosquitoes develop resistance to anti-malaria meds, so you need to know which medication is currently recommended for the area in question).
I was taking Doxycycline during my first few trips to Ghana in 2013-2015 (plus a few days before and a few days after).
In any case you have one great advantage we didn't have in 1967 and it's called the internet. You need to check on what is currently effective in Ghana, and how much you need to take for your body mass.
HTH
Rod
Hello.
For any stay longer than 90 days, no preventive treatment is useful.
Malaria has become increasingly difficult to treat because of over-medication. It's worth 100X better to take a treatment when you have a seizure rather than poisoning your body with chemicals.
I think getting Malaria depends on where you live and your surroundings. I first came to Ghana in 1990 and for virtually the whole time I was here I had malaria. I was living in Enchi on a college compound and spent a lot of time in the evenings in the village. Malaria was my worry when I returned in 2010 but I haven't had it in the 9 years I've been here and I have been bitten by mosquitoes. I think the difference is that I live in an estate and the mosquitoes that bite me haven't bitten anyone with malaria. If I go out at night I always use protection.
I suggest you follow the advice to take tablets for a couple of weeks before you arrive and then assess your living situation. If you are living in an area where mosquitoes and malaria are prevalent then you can decide for yourself whether you want to continue but don't take it lightly a young American woman died from malaria in the Kumasi area recently
Hi all, thank you so much for your input. Very informative. Bless you all.
Hi, I'm an expat residing in Kumasi too. I'm originally from Nigeria and yes I took the anti malaria and yellow fever vaccination, I got a certificate of vaccination for it too.
So it is best for you to take the med.
When you do come, hit me up...I'm just two months in Kumasi and it's a relative nicer place to live and work compare to Accra, the capital city.
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