Nearly 3,000 cases in a week! 'Body-bending' Chikungunya fever is rising in Guangdong. How does it spread? How to protect yourself?
Release time：2025.07.28
Recently, the local chikungunya fever epidemic in Guangdong Province has shown an upward trend. From 0:00 on July 20 to 24:00 on July 26, Guangdong Province reported new cases of local chikungunya fever. 2940 No severe or fatal cases have been reported.
Cases are distributed as follows: Foshan 2882 cases, Guangzhou 22 cases, Zhongshan 18 cases, Dongguan, Zhuhai, Heyuan 3 cases each, Jiangmen, Yangjiang, Zhaoqing 2 cases each, Qingyuan, Shenzhen, Zhanjiang 1 case each.
As of 24:00 on July 26, the cumulative number of local chikungunya fever cases reported in Guangdong Province this year is 4824 all mild cases, with no reports of severe or fatal cases. Currently, 3224 cases have been cured, discharged, and released from medical observation.
What is chikungunya fever?
For most people, chikungunya fever is an unfamiliar and difficult-to-pronounce name, so what exactly is chikungunya fever?
Chikungunya fever (CHIK) is an acute infectious disease caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV), transmitted by the bite of Aedes mosquitoes. Its name is a transliteration from the Makonde language, meaning "that which bends up the body in pain." 。
Chikungunya fever was first discovered in 1952 in Tanzania; on March 4, 2008, the first imported case of chikungunya fever in mainland China was found at Guangzhou Baiyun Airport; in September 2010, the first community outbreak of chikungunya fever in China occurred in Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, with a total of 282 cases reported.
Currently, chikungunya fever mainly prevails in tropical and subtropical regions, especially in South America, Africa, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and other areas such as Brazil, India, Réunion Island (France), Thailand, Malaysia, etc.
Countries and regions where chikungunya virus transmission has occurred or is currently occurring (as of December 2024)
Source: World Health Organization
Chikungunya fever is a self-limiting disease with an incubation period of 1-12 days, usually 3-7 days. Mild cases typically recover within 5-7 days after onset, with generally good prognosis. Its clinical features include sudden fever, often accompanied by severe joint pain and rash.
Chikungunya fever transmission
On July 23, Duan Leilei, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, stated at a press conference of the National Health Commission: There is no evidence of human-to-human transmission of chikungunya fever.
So how does chikungunya fever, which does not spread from person to person, cause local epidemic transmission?
The sources of infection for chikungunya fever are mainly infected animal hosts and patients, primarily transmitted to humans through bites from Aedes mosquitoes carrying the chikungunya virus. The virus mainly circulates in a "human-mosquito-human" cycle. After a person is infected with the chikungunya virus, they can develop a high titer of viremia within 2-5 days. When bitten by an Aedes mosquito, the mosquito may become infected and can then transmit the virus to others through subsequent bites.
How to prevent chikungunya fever
Chikungunya fever is a disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, so preventing mosquito-borne infectious diseases depends on mosquito control and prevention. The breeding of Aedes mosquitoes depends on standing water. Therefore, the key to preventing chikungunya fever is eliminating adult mosquitoes, removing standing water, and preventing mosquito bites. 。
Eliminating adult mosquitoes can be done at home using various household mosquito control products, such as electric mosquito repellents, mosquito coils, or mosquito sprays.
Removing standing water is important because Aedes mosquitoes usually lay eggs and breed larvae in small containers of standing water. Common breeding sites in homes include containers for aquatic plants (such as aglaonema, lucky bamboo, pothos, etc.), trays under flower pots, and containers with water on rooftops; outdoors, various containers with standing water serve as breeding grounds. By turning over pots and containers and removing standing water, mosquito breeding environments can be effectively eliminated, reducing mosquito populations.
Preventing mosquito bites includes installing screens on doors and windows at home, using mosquito nets while sleeping, wearing light-colored long-sleeved clothing during outdoor activities, and applying mosquito repellent.
Additionally, if an individual experiences high fever, severe joint pain, and rash, especially with a history of mosquito bites or travel to epidemic areas, they should seek medical treatment immediately.
To respond to the chikungunya fever epidemic, Jinhao Pharmaceutical has independently developed and produced the chikungunya virus nucleic acid detection kit (fluorescent PCR method), chikungunya virus IgM/IgG antibody detection kit (colloidal gold method), chikungunya virus antigen detection kit (colloidal gold method) and more vector-borne pathogen detection kits.
Through rapid and accurate laboratory testing, achieving " Early detection, early reporting, early isolation, early treatment , effectively reducing the risk of epidemic spread.
Copyright © 2025 Beijing Kinghawk Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.