RFP Staff
♦ Cabarrus Health Alliance confirmed first case of Chikungunya virus, the mosquito-borne virus in Cabarrus county. According to health officials the patient, a travel-related case, visited a Caribbean country recently where they were infected by a mosquito bite. The CDC and the N.C. Department of Human Services have been alerted.
North Carolina currently has 10 confirmed cases of Chikungunya virus. Cases are confirmed in Buncombe, Cabarrus, Forsythe, and Alamance counties.
The appearance of more chikungunya virus cases in North Carolina is cause for alarm this early in the summer.
Although the chikungunya virus is rarely fatal, it is long lasting, quite painful, and debilitating. No known medication or vaccine exists to prevent infection. The mosquito carrying the virus bites during the daylight hours making the probability of infection far higher than if the carrier mosquito was nocturnal.
It is important get rid of free-standing water at your homes and replace screens with holes in them.
Symptoms of the virus are fever, headache, muscle ache, but the hallmark symptom is joint pain. The word chikungunya means “walking stooped over”. Individuals unfortunate enough to catch the virus may suffer joint pain for many years, so it’s important to avoid the virus altogether.
Previous Rowan Free Press article on Chikungunya virus containing identifying photos of the carrier mosquitos common to Rowan County:
