sjduskin

You do NOT get PCDS on the last day of the cruise - this is a fallacy. The current medical thinking is that the germ of the disease is planted in the cruise docs, it is acquired during the handling of tickets during embarkation, and it incubates upon exposure to sea air and the imbibing of various frozen concoctions, only fulminating and presenting when these agents are about to be withdrawn. (There is a theory that it may be implanted during the wearing of life vests, but there is not as yet any empirical evidence to this effect.) In any case, it is endemic to the cruise experience and cannot be avoided. Attempts to avoid the condition by continuous additional administration of frozen concoctions only result in delayed expression of the symptoms, with additional complications frequently presented. For further information, see the Physician's Deck Reference, 2004 Ed.