Chikungunya

Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral illness caused by the chikungunya virus. It's spread by the same Aedes mosquitoes that transmit dengue and Zika — mosquitoes that bite mostly in the daytime and breed in clean, standing water. Chikungunya causes a sudden high fever and typically severe joint pain. India sees outbreaks most years, especially during and after the monsoon.

Symptoms

Symptoms usually appear 3-7 days after a mosquito bite:

• Sudden high fever
• Severe joint pain — often in multiple joints, typically hands, wrists, ankles, and feet. Can be disabling for days to weeks.
• Muscle aches, headache
• Rash
• Fatigue
• Nausea, loss of appetite

Most people recover in 7-10 days, but joint pain can persist for months — sometimes more than a year — in some people. Deaths are rare, usually in very young, very old, or medically fragile people.

Diagnosis

Blood tests (RT-PCR in the first week, IgM/IgG antibodies later) confirm chikungunya. Testing is important because dengue, Zika, and chikungunya have overlapping symptoms but different complications and management.

Treatment

There's no specific antiviral — care is supportive:

• Rest
• Plenty of fluids
• Paracetamol for fever and joint pain
• Avoid aspirin, ibuprofen, and other NSAIDs until dengue is ruled out — because chikungunya and dengue look alike early on, and NSAIDs can worsen dengue bleeding
• Joint pain after the acute illness — physiotherapy and medical guidance help; long-term anti-inflammatory medicines may be prescribed

Prevention

Prevention is the same as for dengue — stop mosquito breeding around your home:

• Empty, cover, or clean any water-holding container weekly — flower pots, buckets, coolers, tyres, drains
• Change water in vases and pet bowls weekly
• Mosquito nets, screens
• Mosquito repellents on exposed skin
• Long sleeves and trousers during outbreak periods
• Community-level clean-up efforts