Travel advice re Zika & pregnancy / IVF

[CarlottaD27]

Hi all,

I was wondering if anybody had been given specific travel advice from their Dr to not travel to certain destinations due to Zika risk?

My Fertility Dr (not very helpfully) didn't have a view and said to check travel sites. I have seen online that some destinations (e.g. Maldives, Caribbean, South America, etc) were still flagged as low risk, even though the outbreak is over.

My husband and I would love a break in Autumn before starting IVF, but i'm aware that Drs in the past have recommended waiting three months to start treatment after visiting a potential Zika destination - a delay we of course don't want! So i want to be as cautious as possible, but obviously don't want to overreact and miss out if Zika is no longer a real threat x

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK]

Hi Carlotta. It is usually recommended that you wait at least 3months before having fertility treatment or trying to get pregnant just in case, after travelling to countries known to carry the virus. Check with your GP and Haooy Holiday. Diane

[CarlottaD27 in reply to DianeArnold]

thanks for that! It’s hard to know as so many countries have minimal list but I will check with GP as suggested

[Purpledoggy]

Zika has been around a long time and is not going anywhere. The upsurge in cases has declined but the virus is still circulating all over, including in parts of Europe. No country is truly zero risk (including the UK-the mosquitoes that transmit it are on the rise here) so places can’t be less than low risk, if that makes sense. I avoided anywhere that was not low risk while doing IVF just in case. Xx

[CarlottaD27 in reply to Purpledoggy]

Thanks for that! I think for peace of mind I will also avoid any areas with risk above low for sure x

[Purpledoggy in reply to CarlottaD27]

Also just try to be sensible with mozzies-plenty of strong bug spray, cover skin, keep windows closed at night etc. The Zika mosquito feeds in the daytime annoyingly, usually just after sunrise and just before sunset. Xx

[Sparklylife]

For couples travelling together, or a man travelling on his own - the advice is to wait 3 months before you try conceive. We were also told we would have to wait 3 months before we could start ivf after returning if we did travel to a country at risk.

The NHS website also has some advice.

The government website also has a list of you search Zika.

Wishing you all the best and happy travels beforehand 🥰🧡

[Twiglet2]

we have to sign that we haven’t travelled to a country on the zika virus list in the last year. The clinic supplied a list of which Mexico and some islands seemed to be the only ‘holiday’ destination on there really. If you have travelled treatment is delayed by 3 months. We’ve just stuck to Europe for that reason for the last few years ….I will get to Mexico one day 🤣

[Eswyn]

It’ll depend on your clinic. Ours point blank refused to start treatment until 3 months after we returned from the Carribbean. At the time I was so annoyed but I look back now and it was a much needed break and one of the few places to go for Winter sun. In terms of harm to babies, I know people who have travelled to risk areas while pregnant or trying to conceive naturally and am yet to come across anyone who’s child has been affected by Zika.

[CarlottaD27]

Thank you for all the replies! The NHS website is a really good resource (in the absence of guidance from my clinic so far)

It looks like lots of exotic destinations pose some level of threat and I don’t want any delays so I will be cautious and avoid them. Sadly no Caribbean break for me then but it’s probably a good thing as we could do with saving all we can ahead of treatment!

[Daisy-Delilah in reply to CarlottaD27]

My clinic provided me with a link (I can’t find it now) but basically you can see on a map which countries are at risk of zika or not. We had been planning a trip to Caribbean and had to cancelled it as we didn’t want to wait 3 months.

I think the options are basically Europe or Dubai. We chose Dubai as we needed some winter sun and actually really enjoyed it and the break was really good for us.

I hope you find somewhere nice to go!

[CarlottaD27 in reply to Daisy-Delilah]

Thanks for that! Yes it’s amazing how many countries present some risk and I fear if we want some winter sun out options will also be limited x

[Daisy-Delilah in reply to CarlottaD27]

Yes, we just didn’t want to take the risk and delay treatment, there seem to be so many delays anyway…

All we wanted to do was sit in the sun and chill out so Dubai was just as good!

💕xxx

[CarlottaD27 in reply to Daisy-Delilah]

That’s definitely what we’re after! I will have to look into Dubai

[MyPatronusIsACorgi]

My clinic asks us not to visit any sites where Zika and Ebola are at a higher risk and we have to sign a declaration form to confirm that we haven’t visited any place on the list which has a higher risk. Can’t remember the wait they suggested to start but it was definitely at least 3 months. Not worth the risk IMO x

[zytajones]

We did travel to a Zika countries but the both of us done the blood tests for Zika before the treatment. You can check it is something your clinic does. This test cost us £150 each but we had a definitive answer.

[CarlottaD27 in reply to zytajones]

I didn’t know there was a test! Thank you, I can see how it have you peace of mind