Trends in Travelers

Abstract

According to the World Tourism Organization (WTO), the number of travelers to foreign destinations increased by 10% in 2004, to 760 million, the highest growth in 20 years.1 The principal factors driving this growth were the recovery in the world economy, fewer concerns about disease outbreaks (e.g., SARS), and increased geopolitical stability.Travel increased in all areas, but particularly strong growth was seen in travel to regions in Asia Pacific and the Middle East. From the standpoint of travel medicine, this means that an increasing number of travelers will be exposed to infectious disease risks across many different regions of the world. Exposure to such diseases is a major concern and is related to destination, activities, and duration of stay. Along with the increase in travel, there has been a recent increase in the numbers of cases of several tropical diseases, including malaria (over 400 million cases), dengue fever (50 million cases), yellow fever (200,000 cases), and schistosomiasis (over 600 million cases).2 As travel to the developing world increases, these diseases are becoming increasingly familiar to and feared by the traveling public from industrialized regions. Although outbreaks of emerging diseases such as SARS and West Nile have received extensive media coverage and have contributed to raised awareness among travelers of travel health risks, still many travelers still do not seek or use available preventative measures when going abroad. In Europe 48%, in the United States 64% and in South Africa 26% did not obtain travel health advice prior to departure.3–5 More than 10,000 imported cases of malaria are reported every year, but many short-term travelers do not avail themselves of travel health advice before embarking on their journey.