Investigation concerning demand and vaccination applicants to traveler's vaccines (typhoid fever and meningococcal vaccines) not marketed in Japan

In recent years, the number of Japanese traveling to foreign countries is increasing. Most of them travel to Asian regions where many infectious diseases that are rare or don't occur in Japan still remain endemic or epidemic. Of these infectious diseases typhoid fever and meningococcal infection are now preventable because safe and effective vaccines have been developed and now marketed. However, these vaccines are hardly available in Japan because the Japanese Government has not admitted them. To investigate the demand for the two vaccines, the author personally imported inactivated polysaccharide typhoid vaccine and groups A, C,Y and W135 combined polysaccharide meningococcal vaccine, both manufactured by Aventis-Pasteur. After obtaining approval of the ethical committee of our hospital, vaccination was started. From May 6, 2003 to September 30, 2004, 124 applicants received typhoid vaccine and 35 were injected with meningococcal vaccine. Of 124 vaccinees of typhoid vaccine, 46 went to Afghanistan, 15 to India, 8 to Thailand. Of 35 vaccinees of meningococcal vaccine 6 went to the USA, 5 to Guinea and 3 to England. In addition a total of 12 physicians and nurses having no international scheduled trip were also immunized with meningococcal vaccine. None of these vaccines are widely known in Japan now. Based on our results, however, the expansion of recognition and demand for these two vaccines is expected.