What Are the Long-Term Effects of Chikungunya?

Introduction

Chikungunya was first discovered in the United Republic of Tanzania in 1950. It later became known in Asia and Africa, and outbreaks in urban countries started in Thailand, followed by India. Chikungunya has now been identified in over 110 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and America, spreading even more due to viral adaptations. It is not a fatal disease, but no particular treatment or medication can cure it. Generally, painkillers are prescribed along with a lot of fluid intake.

What to know about Chikungunya?

Chikungunya comes from the Kimakonde language, which means ‘bent over’. This signifies the symptom of the disease, extreme joint and muscle pain.

Chikungunya is a disease caused by the Chikungunya (CHIKV) virus, which spreads from one person to another through mosquitoes. When a mosquito bites a person whom Chikungunya infects, it carries the infected blood in its system for several weeks, replicating it in the process and making it highly concentrated. Eventually, the virus makes its way to the mosquito’s saliva, so when it feeds on another healthy host, it infects them. The virus grows inside the newly infected person, making them sick within two to three days of the initial contact with the virus. This cycle continues, and thus the infection spreads.

Two varieties of mosquitoes spread chikungunya: the Aedes aegypti mosquito and the Aedes albopictus mosquito. They mainly feed during the day and lay eggs in stagnant water. 

Symptoms of Chikungunya

Usually, symptoms of Chikungunya are seen within three to seven days of the mosquito bite. But in a few cases, it is even seen by the second day or ten days later. 

When the symptoms are mild, people might mistake it for a different illness and leave it untreated, aggravating the disease. 

Fever and joint pains are the two most common symptoms of Chikungunya. Joint and body pain develop immediately, but fever begins suddenly. While the fever subsides eventually, joint pain might prolong in a few cases.

Other symptoms of chikungunya include, 

• Headache
• Rash
• Swelling in joint
• Fatigue
• Muscle pain
• Nausea 

Long-Term Effects of Chikungunya

The most common long-term effect of Chikungunya is chronic joint pain. Arthritis caused by Chikungunya also persists for years after being affected by the disease. The most commonly affected joints are the smaller joints like wrists, fingers and ankles.

Older adults and newborn babies are more at risk of getting long-term complications due to Chikungunya. People who have existing health conditions are also at risk of getting more severe long-term effects like diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure. Death due to Chikungunya is infrequent.

Treatment

There is no particular medication or vaccine to treat Chikungunya, so only the symptoms are treated. Treatment for Chikungunya aims to ease the pain caused by the disease. Treatment for Chikungunya includes,

• Taking analgesic medicines for the pain.
• Taking antipyretic medicines for fever.
• Intake of plenty of fluids.
• Taking enough rest.

In rare cases, the muscle and joint pain persists for months or years. 

Conclusion

Chikungunya is transmitted through mosquitoes and is not a fatal disease. It has become a prevalent disease. Since no antiviral medication is available for Chikungunya, it is treated with analgesic and antipyretic medicines, rest, and fluid intake. It is essential to get blood work done to confirm the diagnosis of Chikungunya, as dengue and malaria have similar symptoms. 

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