I last reported on the disease known as chikungunya back in 2014, when there was a significant outbreak in South America.
Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne disease caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV), primarily transmitted to humans by infected Aedes mosquitoes. The disease is characterized by sudden high fever and severe joint pain, such that its name means “bent over.” Symptoms usually appear 2–12 days after a bite from an infected insect, and debilitating joint pain sometimes lasts for months or even years in some patients.
The Chikungunya virus outbreaks are now being reported in several regions across the globe, with a significant surge in southern China. Over 8,000 cases have been reported in China in the past month alone, primarily in the city of Foshan, marking the country’s largest outbreak of this particular pathogen to date.
Chinese authorities have decided to use some moves from their COVID playbook in response.
At building entrances in the city, workers spray residents with mosquito repellent before allowing them in. Community workers in red vests go door to door, inspecting homes and ordering residents to dump any stagnant water. Those who don’t cooperate could be fined or, in serious cases, face criminal charges for “obstructing the prevention of infectious diseases,” according to an illustrated government explainer.At least five households have had their electricity cut for not cooperating, according to a notice issued by a neighborhood committee in the district of Guicheng.When Covid-19 spread in China, the country imposed some of the world’s strictest measures — the much-hated zero Covid policy that involved mass testing, citywide lockdowns, mandatory quarantines and the constant tracking of people’s movements.On RedNote, a popular social media platform, residents say they are being ordered by community workers to empty all containers of water, including water bowls for their dogs. Some complained that the policing was excessive.Two residents who were reached by message on RedNote and did not want to be named out of fear of retaliation told The New York Times that workers entered their homes without their consent to search for stagnant water.
China’s first case of Chikungunya was reported in 2008. Apparently, natural genetic mutations that helped the virus adapt to new types of mosquitoes and enhanced transmissibility have led to the current outbreak in the region.
The importation of CHIKV to mainland China was first detected in 2008. The genomic sequences of four of the imported viruses were identified, and phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that the sequences were clustered in the Indian Ocean group; however, seven amino acid changes were detected in the nonstructural protein-coding region, and five amino acid changes were noted in the structural protein-coding regions. In particular, a novel substitution in E2 was detected (K252Q), which may impact the neurovirulence of CHIKV. The adaptive mutation A226V in E1 was observed in two imported cases of chikungunya disease.
It’s good to know that the Wuhan Institute of Virology is not responsible for the current situation.
Nonetheless, U.S. health officials are cautioning travelers who are heading to Asia, South America, Africa, and the Indian Ocean.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this month issued a travel notice for the Guangdon province in China, encouraging travelers to practice enhanced precautions. The agency issued the same notices for other countries where outbreaks have been reported, including Bolivia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mayotte, Réunion, Somalia and Sri Lanka.The CDC is also asking U.S. residents to exercise caution when visiting the following countries, which have not yet reported an outbreak but are at elevated risk of exposure: Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, India, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand and Nigeria.
As of 2025, there have been no locally acquired cases of Chikungunya in the United States. The most significant outbreak of locally acquired cases occurred in 2014, when I last reported on the subject.
Image by perplexity.ai
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