Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Bite by an Aedes mosquito. This species can transmit diseases such as chikungunya, dengue, and Zika. Credit: NIAID

Article (news)

Mosquito

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/175322758141010142022-bite-by-an-aedes-mosquito.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Bite by an Aedes mosquito. This species can transmit diseases such as chikungunya, dengue, and Zika. Credit: NIAID</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>GENEVA, Switzerland — The World Health Organization warned on Tuesday a major chikungunya virus epidemic risks sweeping around the globe, calling for urgent action to prevent it.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/12/27/23/chikungunya-cases-in-ph-up-by-381-percent-to-2854"> Chikungunya cases in Philippines up by 381 percent to 2,854</a></div><p>The WHO said it was picking up exactly the same early warning signs as in a major outbreak two decades ago and wanted to prevent a repeat.</p><p>Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease that causes fever and severe joint pain, which is often debilitating. In some cases it can be deadly.</p><p>&quot;Chikungunya is not a disease that is widely known, but it has been detected and transmitted in 119 countries globally, putting 5.6 billion people at risk,&quot; said the WHO&#x27;s Diana Rojas Alvarez.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/health-science/2025/5/14/dengue-chikungunya-may-soon-be-endemic-in-europe-research-0708">Dengue, chikungunya may soon be endemic in Europe: research</a></div><p>She recalled how from 2004 to 2005, a major chikungunya epidemic swept across the Indian Ocean, hitting small island territories before spreading globally and affecting almost half a million people.</p><p>&quot;Today, WHO is seeing the same pattern emerge: since the beginning of 2025, Reunion, Mayotte and Mauritius have all reported major chikungunya outbreaks. One-third of the population of Reunion is estimated to have been infected already,&quot; she told a press briefing in Geneva.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;RAISING THE ALARM&#x27;</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>The symptoms of chikungunya are similar to those of dengue fever and Zika virus disease, making it difficult to diagnose, according to the WHO.</p><p>Rojas Alvarez said that like 20 years ago, the virus was now spreading to other places in the region, such as Madagascar, Somalia and Kenya.</p><p>&quot;Epidemic transmission is also occurring in south Asia,&quot; she added.</p><p>In Europe, imported cases have also been reported, linked with the outbreak in the Indian Ocean islands. Local transmission has been reported in France, and suspected cases detected in Italy.</p><p>&quot;Because these patterns of transmission were seen in the outbreak from 2004 onwards, WHO is calling for urgent action to prevent history from repeating itself,&quot; said Rojas Alvarez.</p><p>She noted that the case fatality rate was less than one percent, &quot;but when you start counting millions of cases, that one percent can be thousands&quot; of deaths.</p><p>&quot;We are raising the alarm early so countries can prepare early, detect and strengthen all the capacities to avoid going through very large outbreaks.&quot;</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>TIGER MOSQUITOS</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Rojas Alvarez explained that in regions where populations have little or no immunity, the virus can quickly cause significant epidemics, affecting up to three-quarters of the population.</p><p>Chikungunya virus is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected female mosquitoes, most commonly Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes.</p><p>The latter, which is known as the tiger mosquito, is venturing farther north as the world warms because of human-driven climate change.</p><p>They bite primarily during daylight hours, with peak activity often in the early morning and late afternoon.</p><p>The WHO urged people to protect themselves through measures like using mosquito repellent and not leaving water to stagnate in containers such as buckets, where mosquitoes can breed.</p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><strong><br/></strong></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hJLxugt0djo?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease that causes fever and severe joint pain, which is often debilitating. In some cases it can be deadly.</p>

Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease that causes fever and severe joint pain, which is often debilitating. In some cases it can be deadly.

WHO sounds alarm on risk of chikungunya epidemic

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WHO sounds alarm on risk of chikungunya epidemic

Agence France-Presse

Published Jul 23, 2025 07:41 AM PHT

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