Vaccination and Health Risks

Your doctor can give you important advice and prescribe vaccines and medications to help you stay safe while traveling abroad. The following are vaccinations and medications you and your physician may wish to consider before travel to Nepal.

To have the most benefit, see a doctor at least 4-6 weeks before your trip to allow time for your vaccines to take effect. If you are leaving sooner, it is still important to see a doctor as soon as possible for vaccines, medications and information about how to protect yourself from illness and injury while traveling.
Your doctor will make specific recommendations, depending on your health and immunization history, areas of the country you will be visiting, planned activities and other factors. If your travel plans will take you to more than one country during a single trip, be sure to let your health-care provider know. Long-term travelers, such as those who plan to work or study abroad, may also need additional vaccinations as required by their employer or school.
If you have a chronic medical condition, share your travel plans with any doctors who are currently treating you.

Vaccine or Disease	Risk	Vaccination or Treatment Recommendations
Routine		Recommended if you are not up-to-date with routine shots such as, measles/mumps/rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria/pertussis/tetanus (DPT) vaccine, poliovirus vaccine, etc.
Hepatitis A		Recommended
Hepatitis B		Recommended, especially for those who might be exposed to blood or body fluids, have sexual contact with the local population, or be exposed through medical treatment (e.g., for an accident).
Japanese Encephalitis		Recommended if visiting lowland rural areas. The CDC reports that the vaccine is not routinely recommended for travelers whose destinations are only high-altitude areas. The transmission season is generally July to December. Travelers with extensive outdoor, evening, and nighttime exposure in rural areas, such as might be experienced while bicycling, camping, working outdoors, or sleeping in unscreened structures without bed nets, may be at high risk even if their trip is brief.
Malaria		Recommended: atovaquone/proguanil, doxycycline, or mefloquine. Drug resistance: Chloroquine. Present throughout country at altitudes below 2,000 m (6,562 ft). None in Kathmandu and on typical Himalayan treks.
Meningococcal Meningitis		Not endemic
Rabies		Recommended for travelers spending a lot of time outdoors, especially in rural areas, involved in activities such as bicycling, camping, or hiking. Also recommended for travelers with significant occupational risks, such as veterinarians, for long-term travelers and expatriates living in areas with a significant risk of exposure, and for travelers involved in any activities that might bring them into direct contact with bats. Children are considered at higher risk because they tend to play with animals, may receive more severe bites, or may not report bites.
Typhoid		Recommended
Yellow Fever		Proof of yellow fever vaccination required only if travelers is arriving from a country where yellow fever is present and at least 1 year of age, including transit at least 12 hours in an airport located in a country with risk of yellow fever transmission.

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This document is not a complete medical guide for travelers to this region. Conditions change over time and the recommendations for various countries at the time you travel may differ from the recommendations listed here. Consult with your doctor or visit the CDC website for specific information related to your needs and your medical history; recommendations may differ for pregnant women, young children, and persons who have chronic medical conditions.

Be sure to read the information about all the regions you are planning to visit.