Facilities and Health Information
Medical care is substandard throughout the country including Grande Comore. Adequate evacuation insurance coverage for all travelers is a high priority. Travelers should carry their own supplies of prescription drugs and preventive medicines. Malaria is prevalent in Comoros. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises that travelers to Comoros should take one of the following antimalarial drugs: mefloquine (Lariam™), doxycycline, or atovaquone/proguanil (Malarone™). Other protective measures, such as the use of bed nets and insect repellants, help to reduce malaria risk. Travelers who become ill with a fever or flu-like illness while traveling in a malaria-risk area, and up to one year after returning home, should seek prompt medical attention, and tell the physician their travel history and what antimalarials they have been taking. For additional information on malaria, protection from insect bites, and antimalarial drugs, please visit the CDC Travelers' Health web pages. The East African Indian Ocean islands have seen a rise in the cases of chikungunya, a viral dengue-like ailment, and dengue itself. As with malaria, chikungunya and dengue are transmitted by mosquitoes. Every effort should be made to use bed nets, repellants, proper clothing, and other barriers that discourage/prevent mosquito bites. The CDC has further information on chikungunya and dengue on its website. Rabies vaccines should be considered for shorter stays for adventure travelers, hikers, backpackers, or rural travelers who are staying more than 24 hours away from a reliable source of human rabies immune globulin and rabies vaccine for post-exposure treatment. Take seriously all bat, carnivore, and other mammal bites or scratches, and seek post-exposure prophylaxis even if already immunized.
There is a high risk of marine hazards (jellyfish, coral, and sea urchins) as well as traveler’s diarrhea throughout the country. Food and beverage precautions are essential in order to reduce chances of illness. Travelers should carry loperamide (Imodium®) and/or a quinolone (Ciprofloxacin) antibiotic for presumptive self-treatment, if diarrhea occurs.
Drinking Water Source - % of rural population improved
96.7%
Drinking Water Source - % of total population unimproved
3.3%
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
0.1%
Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
2.2
People Living with HIV/AIDS
450
Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
.15
Sanitation Facility Access - % of total population unimproved
64.6%
Sanitation Facility Access - % of urban population improved
50%
Sanitation Facility Access - % of rural population improved
29.7%