my bro in law is coming back from africa ( sudan ) and i have a 2 week old child- should he stay clear ?

Question

should the bro in law see a doctor when he gets back ?

Answer 1

If the only thing you are trying to do is reduce the possibility
of spreading an infectious disease - then yes, he should certainly
stay away from the child and probably you as well (or anyone
else who has a lot of contact with the child).... At least for awhile.

Of course, family is family, and there is a lot to be said for
bonding.

You're on a probability curve... That is, in the first day, the
probability of spreading a disease is the highest it will be,
on the next day it will be significantly lower, and the third
day lower still...

But as time progresses, the day-to-day difference in
infection rate will slow - that is, day 200 won't be that
different from day 199. There will never be NO risk
of spreading the infection, though the risk of other
types of infection (say from kids at school) will become
much higher.

If you can stop the brother-in-law from touching the
child or his things for a week, I think you've covered the
vast majority of risk - but that risk will never be zero.

Should the brother go to the doctor? Answer really has
nothing to do with the baby.

It couldn't hurt.

However, if the brother-in-law shows no outward signs of
sickness, no doctor will request all kinds of other tests to
verify health. She might take blood pressure, heart rate, etc,
but I doubt she'll learn anything unless the patient is presenting
some sort of symptom.

Answer 2

I think this is a good question since a 2 week old infant does not have the same immunities as a 2 year old. Anyone traveling to Africa likely got the necessary vaccinations.

You could try the Center for Disease Control

www.cdc.gov

That's what I did when traveling during SARS.

Answer 3

There's no reason why he shouldn't be able to be around infants. I was in Africa last year with a group of about 12 adults. There were also two kids there...one was 3, the other was only 8 months.

Answer 4

YES! Infants that young should not be out exposed to people like that. At this age they do not have resistance built up. I understand that family and friends are eager to see the new baby, but keep anyone who is sick away from your baby.

He cannot give your baby AIDS- like one answer said, but when we send new infants home from the hospital after they're born, we reccomend that you keep them away from crowds and anyone who could be exposed to "germs."

Answer 5

I think so. It's better to do some check up first. A preventive act is need to be done to avoid something bad happen.

Answer 6

he should go to the doctor and do a simple blood work just in case. you never know if he caught something that could really harm you and your baby (HIV). even if its family you should trust no one.

Answer 7

y shud he... just cause aids down there.....