Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease. It is generally transferred to humans via mosquitoes. Female Anopheles mosquito plays an important role in spreading the infection. Chikungunya patients show flu like symptoms in the early stages. Chikun gunya is a preventable disease and can be treated on early diagnosis. Chikun gunya patients are usually misdiagnosed as dengue due to the similar symptoms.
There is no complete cure for chikun gunya. Treatment is done to relieve the symptoms. Patients experience severe joint pains during the course of infection. Chikungunya is also referred to as self-limiting disease. It is not a fatal disease as it does not lead to death of the person. Most of the patients recover completely with chikungunya.
Aedes egypti mosquito generally bites the person during day time and spread the infection. These mosquitoes are generally found in the stagnant water.
Symptoms
Chikungunya patients show visible symptoms in 3-7 days after getting bitten by an infected mosquito. The most common symptoms include:
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Sudden onset of fever
Fever is the common symptoms of many other infectious diseases. It generally gets misdiagnosed as other viral infections like dengue.
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Severe joint pain
Severe joint pain caused during disease makes it difficult for the person to carry out the daily activities. Joint pain may last from few days to weeks depending on the severity of the infection. In older patients the joint pain may last for several months to years.
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Muscle pain
Muscle pain is generally accompanied with joint pain. It makes the situation verse if the patient is suffering already with muscle related disorders. The pain is severe in most cases and it may last for few day or weeks depending on the overall health of the patient.
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Arthritis
Arthritis is a condition that affects multiple joints. Chikun gunya is misdiagnosed as arthritis in few cases as the patients experience severe pain in multiple joints.
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Headache
Severe headache are common in chikun gunya infection.
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Nausea and vomiting
Nausea and vomiting is one of the common symptoms seen in viral infections.
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Rash
Rashes generally appear all over the body during the infection. Rash will not last longer and can be treated in the initial stages on early diagnosis.
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Haemorrhage
The patients experience haemorrhage in the later stages of infection. Haemorrhage can be cured with medication and proper care.
Prevention
There are no vaccines available to prevent chikungunya. Chikungunya infection can be prevented by controlling the number of mosquitoes in and around the houses. Chikungunya infection spread can be prevented by following certain tips:
- Use screens for windows and doors to prevent mosquitoes entering the house.
- Mosquito nets can be used in night to avoid mosquito bites
- Clean stagnant water in and around the houses.
- Clean the standing water from flower pots and buckets.
- Make use of insect repellents regularly to prevent the mosquito bites.
- Wear long sleeved shirts to protect yourself from mosquitoes.
- Clean the ponds and water storage tank frequently to avoid the breeding of mosquitoes.
Atefa Noorain
Connect with Atefa NoorainAtefa Noorain, (Microbiologist) former Head of the Department of Life Sciences, Assistant Professor of Microbiology at Sujatha Degree College for Women. She worked as an Associate Research Analyst at Thomson Reuters and an Associate Editor of two research journals. She has presented her research work in 3 International Conferences. She has written articles for national journals and international journals. She had been felicitated as a Young Speaker in the last conference. She has worked on Nanoparticles as a part of her research project and won the Best Scientist of the Day award.
