From Cayman Islands Public Health Department

Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kiran Kumar has issued an update on the outbreak of the Chikungunya virus disease in the Caribbean.

From 6 December to 31 December 2013, 111 cases of Chikungunya were confirmed in six Caribbean countries.

These are:

Saint Martin (French side): 89 cases

Saint Maarten (Dutch side):  one case

Saint Barthelemy: nine cases (one imported)

Martinique: eight cases

Guadeloupe: three cases

French Guiana: one case (imported)

“Local transmission of Chikungunya virus has been documented in five countries. One hundred and nine cases were of local transmission and two were imported”, Dr Kumar noted.

It is noteworthy that this is the first time locally-acquired cases of Chikungunya have been detected in the Caribbean.  In the Americas, imported cases had previously been reported from Brazil, Canada, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique and the United States of America.

Chikungunya is a viral disease, carried mainly by the Aedes Aegypti mosquito and causes a dengue-like sickness. The symptoms appear between four to seven days after the bite of an infected mosquito.   Symptoms include a sudden high fever, severe pain in the wrists, ankles or knuckles, muscle pain, headache, nausea and rash.  Joint pain and stiffness are more common with Chikungunya than with dengue. The management of Chikungunya is symptomatic, similar to that of dengue.

The majority of clinical signs and symptoms last three to 10 days, but joint pain may persist longer.  Severe cases requiring hospitalisation are rare.

There is no vaccine or treatment for Chikungunya, which has infected millions of people in Africa and Asia since the disease was first recorded in 1952.  India, countries in the Indian Ocean, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Indonesia are among the major countries currently with Chikungunya outbreaks.

“The World Health Organization does not advise special screening at points of entry into the country with regards to this event. Nor does it currently recommend the application of any travel or trade restrictions”, said Dr Kumar.

Dr Kiran Kumar is advising that travelers should protect against mosquito bites while in endemic countries. Those who experience fever and severe joint pains after their return should consult a physician and advise of travel history, so that doctors can assess and test for Chikungunya. Such tests will be carried out at the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), Trinidad.

Related story:

Increased cases of Chikungunya in St Martin

From Jamaica Observer

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (CMC) — The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) is reporting an increase in the number of cases of chikungunya disease on the Caribbean island of St Martin.

It says there are now has 89 confirmed and 20 probable cases of chikungunya, a viral disease, carried mainly by the aedes aegypti mosquito that causes a dengue-like sickness.

Symptoms include a sudden high fever, severe pain in the wrists, ankles or knuckles, muscle pain, headache, nausea, and rash. Joint pain and stiffness are more common with chikungunya than with dengue. The symptoms appear between four to seven days after the bite of an infected mosquito. The majority of clinical signs and symptoms last three to 10 days, but joint pain may persist longer. Severe cases requiring hospitalisation are rare.

There is no vaccine or treatment for chikungunya, which has infected millions of people in Africa and Asia since the disease was first recorded in 1952.

The Trinidad-based Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) said that this is the first time locally-acquired cases of chikungunya have been detected in the Caribbean.

In its update, released Monday, the ECDC said that the number of cases of the disease had increased from 66 in December.

The ECDC said the Dutch side of the island has reported one case and that the nearby islands of St. Barthelemy (11), Martinique (music) and Guadeloupe (3) confirmed cases.

The ECDC had earlier warned of the “autochthonous transmission of chikungunya on St. Martin, risk for travel-related cases in continental Europe and unlikely onward transmission from imported cases in EU”.

The ECDC warned that the risk of spread of the disease from St. Martin to other islands in the Caribbean region was “high”, adding that the disease is “new to the Caribbean, therefore, the laboratory capacity to confirm suspected cases is limited and should be strengthened”.

For more on this story go to:

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Increased-cases-of-Chikungunya-in-St-Martin

See also iNews Cayman related stories under “Caribbean chikungunya outbreak grows, poses threat to US” published January 1 2014 at: http://www.ieyenews.com/wordpress/caribbean-chikungunya-outbreak-grows-poses-threat-to-us/