Introduction

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-borne virus transmitted to humans by Aedes mosquitoes. Recent outbreaks of CHIKV have caused significant illness. It leads to an illness with symptoms resembling dengue fever. CHIKV typically involves a short febrile phase lasting two to five days, followed by a prolonged arthralgic disease affecting limb joints. Joint pain can persist for weeks or months.

Signs and Symptoms

The incubation period for Chikungunya disease is two to four days. Symptoms include fever, rash on the trunk and limbs, and arthralgia affecting multiple joints. Other nonspecific symptoms may include headaches, conjunctival injection, and slight photophobia. Fever lasts for two days and then ends abruptly, while joint pain, headaches, insomnia, and prostration can persist for about 5 to 7 days, with longer joint pain in some patients, depending on age.

Diagnosis

Common diagnostic tests for chikungunya include RT-PCR, virus isolation, and serological tests.

• Virus isolation, the most definitive method, is performed in Biosafety level 3 laboratories, taking 1-2 weeks. It involves exposing specific cell lines to blood samples to identify Chikungunya virus-specific responses.
• RT-PCR utilizes nested primer pairs to amplify Chikungunya-specific genes from whole blood. Results are available in 1-2 days.
• Serological diagnosis requires a larger blood sample and uses ELISA to measure Chikungunya-specific IgM levels. Results take 2-3 days, with potential false positives from related viruses like O'nyong'nyong virus and Semliki Forest Virus.