Safety Precautions for Chikungunya Fever Casualties
Standard Precautions defined by the 1996 CDC guidelines should be
adopted
for handling patients.
Mosquito control should be practiced.

Synopsis of Agent Properties Causative organism:
(Systematic name in 1997)  Chikungunya virus
Alternative names:  Buggy Creek virus
Alternative disease names: None

ICTV Acronym CHIKV
Properties: Family: Togaviridae
Genus: Alphavirus
A positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus.
Click here for a detailed description of Alphaviruses
Vector involvement: The disease is spread by culicine mosquitoes.



Key Diagnostic Tests.
Sudden severe headache, chills, fever, joint and muscle pain are the
commonest symptoms.

Detection of antigens or antibody to the agent in the blood (serology)
ELISA is available
An IgM capture ELISA is necessary to distinguish the disease from
dengue
fever.
Differential Diagnosis
Other disease or conditions that need to be eliminated
Other infectious diseases Other problems
Dengue fever
None


Symptoms and effects.

After an incubation period of 3-12 days there is a sudden onset of
flu-like
symptoms including a severe headache, chills, fever (>40°C,104°F),
joint
pain, nausea and vomiting. The joints of the extermities in particular
become swollen and painful to the touch. A rash may sometimes occur.
Hemorrhage is rare and all but a few patients recover within 3-5 days.
Some
can suffer for joint pain for months. Children may display neurological
symptoms.



Medical and Physical Countermeasures.

Vaccination (Immunoprophylaxis)

A vaccine is not available.

Specific Therapy

No specific therapies are available.

Supportive care

Symptoms are treated, e.g. with analgesics and anticonvulsants.

Decontamination The virus is killed by common disinfectants, moist heat
and
drying. The vector (a mosquito) also needs to be controlled with
insecticides.

Agent Properties and Potential Uses

Chikungunya virus is highly infective and disabling but is not
transmissible between people. It would most likely be dispensed as an
aerosol or by the release of infected mosquitos. The disabling joint
pain
and fever, the lack of a suitable animal reservoir in Western countries
and
its lack of lethality make it a very "clean" weapon that could be used
against key civilian installations. The name comes from the Swahili for
"that which bends up" that is a reference to the positions that victims
take to relieve the joint pain.