Chikungunya virus is not new, but before 2004, the disease is considered fatal and does not cause lifelong disability. However, large outbreaks since 2005 has changed everything.
Fatal cases show the involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) in adults and infants. The most frequent symptoms are fever and joint pain.
Other visible symptoms may include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling or rash. Most people recover within a week, but in some cases joint pain may last for months and even years.
Researchers saw an outbreak of chikungunya that affects 300,000 people in Reunion Island, off the coast of Madagascar, in 2005-2006. The result, as many as 57 patients had been diagnosed with chikungunya diseases related to the central nervous system (CNS), including 24 with encephalitis, or an average of 8.6 per 100,000 people.
Encephalitis is more common in babies and people over the age of 65 years. The incidence rate (prevalence) in infants was 187 per 100,000 people, and 37 per 100,000 people there are in people over the age of 65 years.
The death rate for those with encephalitis associated chikungunya virus is 17 percent. An estimated 30-45 percent of those infected with encephalitis suffer from sustained disability.
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