By NewsDesk @infectiousdiseasenews
In a follow-up on the chikungunya outbreak in Chad, health officials are reporting a doubling in cases in the past week or so in the eastern part of the country.
Since the first case of chikungunya was reported in the Abeche district on 14 August, there have been 19,579 reported cases as of 10 September, with no death so far.
All affected people come from three districts in eastern Chad: Abeche (Ouaddaï province), Biltine (Wadi Fira) and Abdi (Sila).
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Local authorities have deployed community workers to sensitize the community on the disease and continue to disinfect entire neighborhoods and public transportation. While this disease normally has a low mortality rate, the combination with other health risk factors is a concern, it further increases the vulnerability of the population and stretches further health response resources and capacity, the World Health Organization notes.
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