Brazil, the host of the ongoing 2014 FIFA World Cup and the holder of the dubious title of “most dengue fever cases in the Americas”, has reported seven imported chikungunya cases during the past week, according to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) today.
In 2013, Brazil reported greater than 1.4 million dengue fever cases, or 63% of all dengue cases in the western hemisphere. This has prompted the continents largest country to attempt using genetically modified mosquitoes as a solution to the growing number of dengue fever cases. The same species of the Aedes mosquito transmits chikungunya, dengue fever and yellow fever.
LISTEN: Chikungunya in the Western Hemisphere: An interview with a CDC expert
Throughout the Latin and non-Latin Caribbean, more than 170,000 autochthonous chikungunya cases have been reported, up 35,000 cases from last week. For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page
The Dominican Republic alone saw an increase in excess of 20,000 cases in a week.
