Vax-Before-Travel Vaccines

Authored by
Staff
Last reviewed
December 3, 2024
Content Overview
Yellow fever, Zika, polio, malaria, measles, Lyme, cholera, chikungunya, and dengue disease vaccinations in 2024.

Vax-Before-Travel Travel Vaccines 2024

Getting vaccinated against infectious diseases is one of the most effective ways to protect your health while traveling abroad, says the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO published an updated list of vaccines in December 2024. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), most travel vaccines should be administered at least one month before departure to ensure maximum protection. The CDC lists the minimum ages and intervals between doses for travel vaccines recommended for U.S. residents. Various U.S. Food and Drug (FDA), U.K. Foreign Travel Advice, and European Medicines Agency (EMA) vaccines are approved for international travelers.

The Vax-Before-Travel vaccine library was updated in December 2024.

Travel Vaccine Advisories

The U.S. CDC and the U.K. Travel Health Pro, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the European Centers for Disease Control (ECDC) publish Travel Health AdvisoriesAssessments, and guidance for cruise ships, enabling travelers to confirm vaccine recommendations by country. The U.S. Department of State publishes Travel Advisories, and U.S. embassies issue travel health security notices. Healthmap.org publishes disease outbreaks segmented by country. 

Anthrax Vaccines

CYFENDUS ™ (AV7909, BioThrax®), a two-dose anthrax vaccine for Post-Exposure Prophylaxis, was approved on July 20, 2023.

Avian Influenza Vaccines

Audenz™ is a monovalent, adjuvanted, cell-based, inactivated subunit vaccine approved by the U.S. FDA. Various pandemic influenza vaccines have also been approved in Europe.

Chikungunya Vaccines

As of November 2024, there is one U.S FDA-approved chikungunya vaccine (IXCHIQ® (VLA1553)) available in the U.S.

Cholera Vaccine

Cholera vaccines are limited in availability globally. WHO-prequalified oral cholera vaccines, including Dukoral®, Shanchol™, and Euvichol®, are available for international travelers. 

Vaxchora is an oral cholera vaccine for active immunization against disease caused by Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1.

DUKORAL® is available in Europe, the U.K., and various countries. 

Dengue Vaccines

As of 2024, various countries have approved QDENGA®, a tetravalent dengue vaccine licensed in over 30 countries, including Asia, Europe, and the U.K.

Diphtheria Vaccines

The U.S. CDC says travelers two months and older traveling to outbreak areas should receive an age-appropriate dose of diphtheria toxoid-containing vaccine if they are not fully vaccinated or have not received a booster dose within five years before departure. In 2024, 11 vaccines will be available to help protect against diphtheria.

Ebola Vaccines

Ebola outbreaks in Africa began in 1976 and continued in 2024. Zaire Ebolavirus vaccines are limitedly available outside of Africa. 

Ervebo, Ebola Zaire Vaccine, Live, is a recombinant, replication-competent Ebola vaccine.

Zabdeno (Ad26.ZEBOV) and Mvabea (MVA-BN-Filo) is an Ebola vaccine therapy.

Ebanga™ (mAb114, Ansuvimab-zykl) is a human monoclonal antibody approved for treating Zaire ebolavirus infections.

Sudan Ebolavirus vaccines are being developed in clinical trials.

Influenza Vaccines

Flu shots are recommended for international travelers wherever influenza viruses spread.

Japanese Encephalitis Vaccines

JENVAC is a single-dose inactivated Japanese Encephalitis Vaccine. This Vero cell-derived vaccine is prepared from the virus's Indian strain (Kolar- 821564XYs).

Ixiaro is an inactivated, adsorbed Vero cell culture-derived vaccine targeted against the Japanese encephalitis virus. It is prepared by propagating JEV strain SA14-14-2 in Vero cells.

Lassa Fever Vaccine

Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic fever without an approved vaccine in 2024.

Lyme Disease Vaccines

Lyme disease vaccine candidates are conducting late-stage clinical studies. VLA15 is a multivalent recombinant protein vaccine candidate that protects people.

Malaria Vaccines

Malaria outbreaks continue in 2024, and vaccines are available in Africa but not in the U.S.

Mosquirix (RTS,S/AS01e) is a recombinant vaccine that triggers the immune system to defend against the first stages of infections when the Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasite enters the human host's bloodstream through a mosquito bite.

R21/Matrix-M™ Malaria vaccine is produced by the Serum Institute of India and developed by scientists at the University of Oxford in England.

Marburg Disease Vaccines

Marburg vaccine candidates are conducting clinical trials, and various Marburg disease outbreaks have been reported in October 2024.

Measles Vaccines

Measles outbreaks continue in 2024, including in the U.S. Various measles vaccines are available at pharmacies.

MERS Vaccine

As of 2024, no approved MERS-CoV vaccines exist, but cases continue to be reported in the Middle East. The VTP-500 vaccine candidate completed Phase I clinical trials in Britain and Saudi Arabia, and the University of Oxford a Phase Ib trial in the U.K. to assess the vaccination of older adults.

Norovirus Vaccine

As of October 2024, the U.S. FDA has not approved a norovirus vaccine candidate.

Mpox Vaccine

The JYNNEOS smallpox-mpox vaccine is commercially available in the U.S.

Nipah Virus Vaccines

Nipah virus vaccine candidates continue in phase 1 clinical trials in 2023. Since 1999, Nipah outbreaks have occurred in Asia, including Bangladesh and India.

Oropouche Virus Vaccine

As of October 2024, there are no Oropouche virus vaccines available.

Plague Vaccine

The WHO-Plague Vaccines in Preclinical Development and Clinical Trials was published in 2023. The primary outcomes were efficacy, safety, and immunogenicity, which were assessed using the Cochrane Collaborations tool. The study concluded that a single-dose F1-based mRNA-LNP vaccine protects the lethal plague bacterium.

Polio Vaccines

Polio vaccination, including booster shots, is recommended when visiting polio-endemic countries in 2024.

IPOL is a sterile suspension of three types of poliovirus: Type 1 (Mahoney), Type 2 (MEF-1), and Type 3 (Saukett). Sanofi Pasteur's single-antigen IPOL vaccine is a highly purified, inactivated poliovirus vaccine with enhanced potency.

Sabin Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine is a liquid trivalent vaccine produced from Sabin poliovirus type 1, 2, and 3 strains grown on Vero cells.

nOPV2 polio vaccine is derived from the live, infectious virus, but it has been 'triple-locked using genetic engineering to prevent it from becoming harmful. nOPV2 is genetically more stable than existing OPVs.

Rabies Vaccines

Various rabies vaccines and candidates seek to reduce rabies mortality in 2024.

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

RMSF is endemic in multiple border states in northern Mexico, including but not exclusive to Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Nuevo León. As of December 2023, no approved RMSF vaccine exists. However, the CDC says early treatment with doxycycline saves lives.

Rotavirus Vaccines

Since 2019, the WHO has prequalified four rotavirus vaccines. GSK's Rotarix is a live, attenuated rotavirus vaccine that exposes your child to a small dose of the virus, which causes the body to develop immunity to the disease.

Tick-Borne Encephalitis Vaccine

TicoVac vaccine is marketed by Pfizer Inc. under the brand names FSME-Immun® in Europe and TICOVAC™ in the U.S. It was developed using a master 'seed' virus similar to the tick-borne encephalitis virus found in nature.

Tuberculosis Vaccine

The BCG vaccine helps prevent tuberculosis and is used for nonspecific protective effects. Various versions of the BCG vaccine are available in 2024. 

Typhoid Vaccine

Typhoid vaccines are available in 2023 and are recommended for people traveling to places where typhoid fever is common, such as South Asia (India).

Vivotif oral vaccine (capsules) is indicated for the immunization of adults and children over six years of age against disease caused by Salmonella Typhi. It contains live bacteria called Salmonella typhi strain Ty21a, which does not cause typhoid fever. Bavarian Nordic A/S owns Vivotif Oral and is available in the U.S.

Typbar TCV is a vaccine containing polysaccharide of Salmonella typhi Ty2 conjugated to Tetanus Toxoid.

Typhim VI is a sterile solution prepared from the purified polysaccharide capsule of Salmonella typhi (Ty 2 strain). 

Urinary Track Infection Vaccine and Treatments

Uromune™ Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) inactivated, oral spray vaccine is approved in various countries. 

Pivya™ antibacterial tablet is approved for female adults with uncomplicated UTIs in Europe.

Yellow Fever Vaccines

The WHO publishes yellow fever vaccine requirements.

YF-VAX® vaccine is licensed in the U.S. and requires about ten days to produce maximum immunity.

Stamaril® is distributed in over 70 countries in 2024, but not in the U.S. 

Zika Virus Vaccines

While Zika virus outbreaks continue primarily in India and the Region of the Americas in 2024, no approved Zika vaccine is available.

Combination Travel Vaccines

Kinrix is a vaccine to prevent Diphtheria, Tetanus Toxoids, Pertussis, and Polio.

Pediarix is a vaccine containing noninfectious proteins from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis bacteria, hepatitis B virus, and inactivated polioviruses.

Note: This content is aggregated from various news sources and vaccine research organizations and has been fact-checked by healthcare providers, such as Dr. Robert Carlson.