[Weezyreid]

I am hoping to travel rather than escort when the time comes, but am nervous only about one thing. I do not respond to the HEP B vaccine...I have tried it 3 times, and none of those three times did I seroconvert (respond and build antibodies to the HEP B). Would you travel to Ethiopia to adopt without this vaccine. Also what is the chance that I would not respond to other vaccines like Hep A??? Thanks
Louise

[ocracoke]

I plan on traveling without the Hep B vaccination. Actualy my doctor didn't have much owrry about that. It is blood and sexually transmitted so it shouldn't be an issue. But I did get the Hep A shots.

[sak9645]

Hep. B is not acquired through the water or food, or through casual contact like hugging or shaking hands. Hep. B is transmitted in blood and bodily fluids.

Thus, ordinary people traveling to Ethiopia don't have to worry about Hep. B unless they plan to have sex with strangers, use illicit drugs by sharing needles with others, or receive medical care in facilities that reuse needles without proper sterilization.

Adoptive parents who travel to Ethiopia are at risk ONLY if their child turns out to be Hep. B positive, and then ONLY if they come into contact with blood and bodily fluids -- for example, while dealing with a nosebleed. Even a child who tests negative in Ethiopia COULD turn out to be positive if the testing was of poor quality. Still, the risk of getting Hep. B from your child isn't huge.

I would think that you can travel without worry. However, you should make every effort to protect yourself from your child's -- or anyone else's child's -- blood and bodily fluids, until your child gets home and is tested by an American facility.

Sharon