Yesterday I received my first Hep A shot for a year-long RTW trip that focuses mostly on Asia, with a little Middle East and Europe in there too. My departure date is January 14th, which is a few days shy of six months. Unfortunately, my doctor told me that they absolutely cannot administer the second shot before the six month marker, and thus are refusing to give it to me. So some questions:

1) Will I really explode if I get the second shot after 6 months - 3 days?
2) My first stop is New Zealand, can I get the second shot there? Do they administer the same vaccine for Hep A? Is there somewhere else where I can get it?
3) What's the efficacy of only one shot? Would it be suicide if I go with just that?

Thanks.

I'm sure folks here can give you some good advice, but you should probably talk to a professional about this. I know your doctor won't give you the second shot a few days early, but they should still be able to answer your questions, right?

Anyway, for what it's worth, I'm in pretty much the same boat, getting my immunizations for a RTW that'll take me through Asia and the Middle East. I've been going to the Adult Immunization & Travel Clinic in San Francisco, which I highly recommend to anyone who happens to be in the area. According to the handbook they gave me, the second shot of the Hep A vaccine should come six to twelve months after the first. Wikipedia says the same, and the article links to some sources that you could check out. So it sounds like you'll have a six-month window in which to get the second shot. Of course, it probably does make sense to get it done in New Zealand, before you get to high-risk areas.

As for whether you can get the correct second shot in New Zealand, I imagine so, but again, you should probably check with a doctor. I can tell you that in my case, I'm getting a different series called Twinrix that immunizes against Hep A and B at the same time. I'll be in Southeast Asia when it comes time for the final shot, and the folks at the clinic told me I could get it done in Bangkok. (They told me not to get it done in Vietnam, where I'll probably be living, because they said the quality control isn't as good.)

When you got the first shot, did your doctor give you one of those yellow cards for recording your immunizations? Mine has all the details of everything I've gotten, so any doctor I visit while I'm on the road should know exactly what the situation is.

Good luck!

Very odd. My doctor is giving me the combo Hep A/Hep B shots in a 5 month span. Absolutely no worries about giving me the final shot at that marker. But perhaps it's just because it's a different vaccine.