The number of travel associated chikungunya cases continue to mount, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The CDC reports that as of August 12, there has been 580 imported cases and the four locally acquired cases in Florida.
Florida leads all state with 138 imported cases, or a quarter of all cases (the Florida Department of Health has the case count at 150), while New York State is second with 96 cases.
To date, 42 states and the District of Columbia have reported at least one imported case in 2014. Alaska, New Hampshire, Montana, North Dakota, Iowa, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado have not reported a case so far.
From 2006‒2013, studies identified an average of 28 people per year in the United States with positive tests for recent chikungunya virus infection (Range 5‒65 per year). All were travelers visiting or returning to the United States from affected areas, mostly in Asia.
This year, the imported cases are linked to travel the Caribbean or South America (N=572), the Pacific Islands (N=5), or Asia (N=3), health officials note.
The CDC says with the recent outbreaks in the Caribbean and the Pacific, the number of chikungunya cases among travelers visiting or returning to the United States from affected areas will continue to increase. These imported cases could result in local spread of the virus in the continental United States. For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page
