ChikV is back!  The Americas see sharp increase and nearly 100 deaths

By Rashaed Esson with Deandrea Hamilton

Editorial Staff

March 23, 2023 – The region is once again facing off with a public health risk and while not new,  the return, prevalence and lethal impact of the virus is wreaking new and heartbreaking havoc; it has also caused the Pan American Health Organization to issue warnings to Member countries urging them to prepare and reinforce their responses to Chikunguna; transmitted by mosquito and responsible for nearly 100 deaths last year.

According to PAHO, the Americas saw an increase in deaths and cases from ChikV in 2022. In fact, PAHO charted 273,685 cases and 87 deaths in 2022; 14 countries and territories in the Americans were reporting.

“This figure is higher than that observed in the same period of 2021 (137,025 cases, including 12 deaths),” according to PAHO/WHO.

In addition, the occurrence of the diseases has gone beyond the historical areas of transmission reported since 2014, which leaked into the first few weeks of 2023.

Paraguay and Brazil were identified in the March 8 report.  The pair of South/Central American countries carry the highest incidence rates of 1,128 cases per 100,000 population.  For Paraguay and 14.2 cases per 100,000 population and for Brazil or 115,539 cases and 33 deaths were reported in the first epidemiological week (EW) of 2023.

For Paraguay, between December and February, a total of 34,659 cases were categorised as probable and confirmed, including 2,910 hospitalizations and 34 deaths.

It is unimaginable that after pushing down the instance and detrimental impacts of ChikV that any nation would count 34 people dead as a result of the mosquito borne virus.  While control of the virus is relatively good, progress on life-saving, preventative medical intervention is stagnant.

“While there are several vaccines currently in different stages of development (as of Dec 2022) they are yet to be licensed. There is no commercial vaccine available to protect against chikungunya virus infection,” informs the World Health Organization.

Meanwhile, the virus spread chiefly by the Aedes aegypti or Aedes albopictus mosquitoes is giving no indication of slowing down in the two nations cited as concerning by PAHO.

“Of total of cases reported (in Paraguay) during this period, 93% of cases (32,258/34,659) and 97% (33/34) of deaths were reported between EW 1 and 8 in 2023,” according to PAHO/WHO.

For Brazil, in 2023, between January and February, there were 35,566 probable and confirmed cases; a 109.6 percent relative increase compared to the same period in 2022. One death is confirmed as due to ChikV; 13 others are still under investigation.