Just one day after the Caribbean islands of St.Vincent and the Grenadines confirmed their first cases of chikungunya, another country in the region is reporting the mosquito borne viral disease.
The Jamaica Observer reported Friday that Antigua and Barbuda health officials held a news conference yesterday to confirm that an individual in his mid 60’s had become the island’s first case.
Medical Officer of Health, Dr Orita Zachariah told reporters that the case had been detected on April 22 and the victim between the ages 60 and 65 works in the capital, St John’s. In addition, they note that there are four other suspected cases and confirmation testing results are pending. For more infectious disease news and information, visit and “like” the Infectious Disease News Facebook page.
The CDC describes the symptoms of chikungunya fever as “fever, headache, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain, rash, and joint pain.” It often is confused with dengue, another viral illness carried by mosquitoes. It is milder than dengue and has no known hemorrhagic component. Some patients report an incapacitating joint pain that can last for months, which is not a dengue symptom.
There is no cure for chikungunya. In addition, there is no preventive vaccine.
