[Prophylaxis-- what lies ahead?]

Travellers to areas where poverty and pollution prevail may be exposed to the same health risks as are the local populations. In the future, prophylaxis for travellers will therefore rely upon advances in prevention being distributed equally to people in both rich and poor societies. Of the eight World Millennium Development Goals to be attained by 2015, most relate indirectly to human health, while three relate directly to the prevention and fighting of diseases. Reduction of the child mortality rate and control of major infectious diseases are among the most important goals. In endemic areas of poverty and deficient infrastructure, children risk being infected primarily by diarrhoeal diseases, hepatitis A, polio, measles and other respiratory infections, and vector-borne diseases such as dengue and malaria, as well as, increasingly, blood/sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis. Adults as well as children travelling to such areas may be hit by the very same diseases. Eradication of polio and measles is within reach, while a number of other infections without effective vaccines will not be controlled without a large-scale global effort including protection of pesticides and antibiotics against development of resistance of disease vectors. Advances in travel medicine are thus closely linked with global advances in health and living conditions.