Sero-Prevalence Study of Chikungunya Cases in and around the area of Jamnagar, Gujarat (India)

Introduction: Chikungunya is a debilitating, non-fatal, mosquito borne viral fever caused by Chikungunya virus (CHIVA). The disease is transmitted to humans by the bite of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. Severe outbreaks of Chikungunya have been reported in several countries of Africa and Asia. Chikungunya fever is characterized by fever with sudden onset, arthralgia, rash, headache and myalgia. However, arthralgia is painful and long lasting, affecting primarily the peripheral joints. Aims & Objectives: To find out the prevalence of Chikungunya fever in and around the regions of Jamnagar district, Gujarat (India). Materials and Methods: The study was conducted from January-2016 to June-2017. Total 139 serum samples were collected from cases with pyrexia and arthralgia. Serum samples were tested for Chikungunya antibodies by Chikungunya IgM ELISA. Results: Out of 139 samples 38 samples were confirmed positive for Chikungunya IgM antibodies. The prevalence rate of Chikungunya was 27.34% with maximum number of cases in the age group more than 15 years 37(97.37%). Females 25(65.79%) were more affected than males 13(34.21%).Maximum number of cases reported during post monsoon season July to December 28(73.68%). Conclusion: Sero-prevalence of Chikungunya in our study 27.34%, which was high in late monsoon, suggests that it continues to be a major health problem in our setup and indicates the need of appropriate strategies & early diagnosis to reduce the severity of disease.