Going to bali early october, will be hitting Lombok, maybe even as far a lakey peak etc. Maybe a lame question but what do you guys pack as a medical kit. I'm sure some of you experienced dudes have a few things the newbies don't think of?

Also is it worth it/should we get malaria shots if staying lombok way, especially in the transition to the wet season in october?

Cheers for info, I always get good help on this forum.

eppo

I took malaria tablets with me to the Mentawis in 09 but never took them. The guys at the camp I stayed at said we wouldnt have to take them, so I didnt. Never had to worry about Bali, I did get my shots the first year I went over but havnt worried about it since then. Im not saying dont worry but its rare that you contract anything worse than Bali belly or a bad hangova.
That said any reef cuts ect must be treated asap so take your own bandaids ect to treat you own cuts.

You are right and I wouldnt worry to much but I do know two people who have contracted dengue fever whist over there and that is a little bit worse than bali belly

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doggie said...

I took malaria tablets with me to the Mentawis in 09 but never took them. The guys at the camp I stayed at said we wouldnt have to take them, so I didnt. Never had to worry about Bali, I did get my shots the first year I went over but havnt worried about it since then. Im not saying dont worry but its rare that you contract anything worse than Bali belly or a bad hangova.
That said any reef cuts ect must be treated asap so take your own bandaids ect to treat you own cuts.

Any unknown tips on the best way to treat reef cuts other than detol and bandaids? a better antispetic, maybe a local one? i.e to heal the quickest - I predict knowing the mad buggers I'm going with, there will be injuries.

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eppo said...

doggie said...

I took malaria tablets with me to the Mentawis in 09 but never took them. The guys at the camp I stayed at said we wouldnt have to take them, so I didnt. Never had to worry about Bali, I did get my shots the first year I went over but havnt worried about it since then. Im not saying dont worry but its rare that you contract anything worse than Bali belly or a bad hangova.
That said any reef cuts ect must be treated asap so take your own bandaids ect to treat you own cuts.

Any unknown tips on the best way to treat reef cuts other than detol and bandaids? a better antispetic, maybe a local one? i.e to heal the quickest - I predict knowing the mad buggers I'm going with, there will be injuries.

Use bottled water when treating the cuts, never ever from the tap. Always check cuts for bits of reef no matter how small. Take a toothbrush for cleaning cuts with.
Betadine <<spelling is what most surf guides use but there is a Balanese one and I cant remember what its called but its just as good as betadine.
The local medics are not bad for any biggish things, I fell off a scooter last year and they were really good and the scars healed up really well.
Travel insurance is a must, anything bigger than what I have just gone through, eg broken bones ect get on a plane home pronto.

Have a great trip and surf Ulus as much as you can, I love that place

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doggie said...

eppo said...

doggie said...

I took malaria tablets with me to the Mentawis in 09 but never took them. The guys at the camp I stayed at said we wouldnt have to take them, so I didnt. Never had to worry about Bali, I did get my shots the first year I went over but havnt worried about it since then. Im not saying dont worry but its rare that you contract anything worse than Bali belly or a bad hangova.
That said any reef cuts ect must be treated asap so take your own bandaids ect to treat you own cuts.

Any unknown tips on the best way to treat reef cuts other than detol and bandaids? a better antispetic, maybe a local one? i.e to heal the quickest - I predict knowing the mad buggers I'm going with, there will be injuries.

Use bottled water when treating the cuts, never ever from the tap. Always check cuts for bits of reef no matter how small. Take a toothbrush for cleaning cuts with.
Betadine <<spelling is what most surf guides use but there is a Balanese one and I cant remember what its called but its just as good as betadine.
The local medics are not bad for any biggish things, I fell off a scooter last year and they were really good and the scars healed up really well.
Travel insurance is a must, anything bigger than what I have just gone through, eg broken bones ect get on a plane home pronto.

Have a great trip and surf Ulus as much as you can, I love that place

aah that's what I was looking for... little bits of info you won't normally consider, lie the toothbrush - nice work mate.

MALARIA

Peroxide and lots of it on coral cuts. It will lift out any small bits of grit as well as kill all the nasties. Also good as a preventative for ear infections if you're swimming in dodgy hotel pools but don't use it once you've developed an ear infection!!!

Good anti-malaria treatment is Gin & Tonic and lots of it . Tonic water has quinine in it! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonic_water

i have been told by some hawiian guys that we stayed with, that peroxide slows down the healing of coral cuts, apparently the best thing is get all the coral bits out, then use antibiotic powder on the cut. not sure what the powder is but i think its fairly common.

Peroxide mixed with water (about 60/40)in little spray bottles) and you need to spray cuts within the first hour or so after coral flossing with doggies toothbrush to get any foreign matter out, finish off with betadine... be careful repeatedly using betadine day after day as it not only kills the bad bacteria it polishes off some of the good bacteria as well
malarone is probably the most effective anti malarial at the moment without side effects but the goalposts change as does the malarial strains, unfortunately it also costs a bomb but you should seriously consider taking it unless you are ultra careful in relation to mossie bites
most people go to bali/lombok etc and don't give a toss "no malaria in bali " i can assure that it is possible to get malaria from bali....!!
i always use a net (sprayed with repellent ),buy some cheap bintang long sleeve t-shirts along with some cheap light coloured batik long pants to sleep in,hot but you can always turn the fan up, and always slather up with the personal repellent before dark, especially if i am going to have a few beers!
you can always take the risk eppo especially if you are carrying a few extra kilos as a good dose of malaria can see you loose well over 10 kgs in in under 2 weeks and god help you if you catch the recurring strains!!
ranting a bit but hindsight is always 20/20 !!
don't do cutbacks at the racetrack at ulu!
cheers

Mate believe it or not we use fresh cut limes squeezed onto all coral cuts to beat the immeadiate infection, then after a surf kepp dressing them with some Betadine. works a treat.

Guys this is gold, cheers. If I take all your advice I'm gonna look some western witch doctor! HA HA. Good tip on the overuse of betadine. Lemons hey?

Yeh I'm not gonna take any chances with the bloody mosies, will do take medical and physical precautions, farq malaria.

beware the benchongs eppo! like the mosquito's they generally only come out at night!!

i used straight tea-tree oil. it does kill some of the good bacteria like bededine but you tend to be surfing every day anyway so it will never heal properly until you return home or stay out of the water for quite a few days (never going to happen)

all my reef cuts didn't get infected where as others who were using other products were not so lucky.

just another product to throw into the mix though

Okay Betadine/peroxide/chinese stuff/antibiotic powder/tea tree oil (like this one) the dogs toothbrush and some fresh water. Got it!

But bit unclear on the malaria thing. Understand the net/repellant/long sleeve shirt/pants etc at sunset/sunrise, but what about medical prevention?

Should we get shots/take pills or shouldn't we and are their any side effects for these?

Cheers, good post, useful.

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eppo said...

Okay Betadine/peroxide/chinese stuff/antibiotic powder/tea tree oil (like this one) the dogs toothbrush and some fresh water. Got it!

But bit unclear on the malaria thing. Understand the net/repellant/long sleeve shirt/pants etc at sunset/sunrise, but what about medical prevention?

Should we get shots/take pills or shouldn't we and are their any side effects for these?

Cheers, good post, useful.

Just go and see your local quack, they generally know the state of play and can advise you on what you will need. My doc has never said to take malaria tablets or shots for Bali, so with that adivice I didnt and I didnt get it
Btw I was bitten by heaps of mozzies over there and didnt get anything.

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doggie said...

The local medics are not bad for any biggish things, I fell off a scooter last year and they were really good and the scars healed up really well.

Yeah, looking good doggie.

I lived in a malaria zone for a few years so taking the meds regularly wasn't an option as they aren't very good for you over time.

If you do decide to take meds then be vigilant about doing the course, don't skip days.

Single biggest thing about malaria is to detect it early because if you do get it as it can progress quite quickly. If you are getting headaches (not alcohol related), aches or nausea then you need to be checked. Tell the doc where you've been and ask for blood tests. The symptoms are like the flu so can be dismissed by doctors if they don't know to look for them. Can take anything up to 4 weeks for you to get ill, so just have it in the back of your mind even after you are back from bali.

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Legion said...

doggie said...

The local medics are not bad for any biggish things, I fell off a scooter last year and they were really good and the scars healed up really well.

Yeah, looking good doggie.

Ha! That was me @ Dome last Saturday morning, went big on Friday night

Malaria;shots are crap,the anti malaria pills amke you more prone to sunburn,screw with your kidneys they arnt good for you at all,
Reef cuts the lime and the paw paw is the go worked a treat for us in indo last year few of the crew got cut up,the toothbrush is a must

if you going to a few out of the way places (fishing villages)
mosquito net
mosquito coils (can buy them there)
rid
long sleeves and long pants (cover up) at dusk.

Yeh done deal, cheers fellas, just gonna go the physical protection for mozies, and will take a selection of your remedies and try the more daring ones on my brother...

including taking him to that doctor on mushies...

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fuall said...

Thie Ta Yao Gin aka that red chinese stuff

this stuff is the shizzle for reef grazes and smaller stuff. Serious or deep coral wounds not so much as it kinda seals the wound and doesnt allow the badies to ooze out.

But it should be in an indo surfers first aid kit - it is perfect in preventing the small stuff turning to big nasties.

Just buy it over there...and dont forget to bring home!

Okay if i get a reef cut I'm going to:

Wash with bottled water, use the dogs toothbrush to get any residual coral etc out, spray it with peroxide, squeeze a lemon on it, lather in some tea tree oil, betadine the cut, crank on the chinese voodoo red Shyte, then dry if off with antibiotic powder...

All this will be done under my mosquito net, in my long bintang pants and shirt, covered from head to toe in repellant, while washing down malaria tablets with my 10th bintang

Can't farqin wait...

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eppo said...

Okay if i get a reef cut I'm going to:

Wash with bottled water, use the dogs toothbrush to get any residual coral etc out, spray it with peroxide, squeeze a lemon on it, lather in some tea tree oil, betadine the cut, crank on the chinese voodoo red Shyte, then dry if off with antibiotic powder...

All this will be done under my mosquito net, in my long bintang pants and shirt, covered from head to toe in repellant, while washing down malaria tablets with my 10th bintang

Can't farqin wait...

Hardly worth the effort ay

No it's not, but I will go anyway, just to see it through.... he he he - can't sit still, 3 weeks to go!!!!

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eppo said...


No it's not, but I will go anyway, just to see it through.... he he he - can't sit still, 3 weeks to go!!!!

Best fun ever mate, where are you staying?

Not sure hey...mate has organised a place for two days in kuta - it's on the beach in front a break - we are having a pow wow, tide chart get together soon so all will be revealed.

After two days, heading out the Nuse lembongan (however it's spelt) and all that jazz, then over to lumbok...then if time permits (prob not), hit west side of sumbawa - lakey peak etc, but time it our enemy, as always.

Accomodation will be on the run, but there is talk of some surf camp?

Yeh got my ticket, board, it seems a lot of medical supplies, my bro and a mate and we'll see.

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eppo said...

Okay if i get a reef cut I'm going to:

Wash with bottled water, use the dogs toothbrush to get any residual coral etc out, spray it with peroxide, squeeze a lemon on it, lather in some tea tree oil, betadine the cut, crank on the chinese voodoo red Shyte, then dry if off with antibiotic powder...

All this will be done under my mosquito net, in my long bintang pants and shirt, covered from head to toe in repellant, while washing down malaria tablets with my 10th bintang

Can't farqin wait...

If you were drinking a G&T it would be even better repellent

yes my obvious collection of remedies would have been more complete with the gin and tonic - damn missed that one. It was kind of a summary to myself actually.

Okay if i get a reef cut I'm going to(version 2):

Wash with bottled water, use the dogs toothbrush to get any residual coral etc out, spray it with peroxide, squeeze a lemon on it, lather in some tea tree oil, betadine the cut, crank on the chinese Thie Ta Yao Gin aka - voodoo red Shyte, then dry if off with antibiotic powder...

All this will be done under my mosquito net, in my long bintang pants and shirt, covered from head to toe in repellant, while washing down malaria tablets with a litre of Gin and Tonic.

With sore needle hole in my arm from the malaria shot, repeat above.

Can't farqin wait...

just go surf!