Chikungunya virus is not the same as West Nile and unlike the West Nile virus which is most often fatal the chikungunya virus is rarely fatal and most often goes away on it's own.
West Nile virus is a single-stranded RNA virus that causes West Nile fever.
It is a member of the family Flaviviridae, from the genus Flavivirus, which also contains the Zika virus, dengue virus, and yellow fever virus. The virus is primarily transmitted by mosquitoes, mostly species of Culex.
You should suspect chikungunya if you have fever, joint pain or other symptoms such as rash, joint swelling, muscle pain and headache after being bitten by a mosquito.
Or if you're unsure if you've been bitten by a mosquito but experience these symptoms then you should suspect chikungunya.
A chikungunya rash will look like flushing on the face and trunk and then progress to macules and then onto erythematous papules on the trunk and also the extremities.
The rash with chikungunya may also appear on the soles, palms and even the face.
Chikungunya arthritis does go away eventually although the arthritis with chikungunya can last for 3 to 4 years after the chikungunya infection goes away.
Chikungunya does not require hospitalization unless it gets severe or does not go away or causes other complications.
The chikungunya virus lasts on average of 10 days and most cases of the chikungunya virus go away on their own and require no medical treatment.
Chikungunya is lifelong immunity as once you recover from chikungunya you have a lifelong immunity to subsequent chikungunya virus infections.
The difference between Zika and chikungunya is that Zika virus is more infectious than chikungunya and chikungunya is a viral disease that is characterized by a sudden fever accompanied by skin rashes and joint pain, followed by persistent rheumatic symptoms.
And Zika, like dengue and chikungunya, is a viral disease that is characterized by fever, exanthema and non-purulent conjunctivitis.
The reason chikungunya causes joint pain is due to the persistence of CHIKV ribonucleic acid in perivascular synovial macrophages has been linked to high immunoglobulin M (IgM) response and chronic arthritis symptoms.
You can treat chikungunya joint pain at home by taking Tylenol or paracetamol to reduce pain and fever.
Also be sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated which also helps with reducing joint pain associated with chikungunya.
If chikungunya goes untreated then nothing usually happens other than the person recovering from the illness.
Rarely does chikungunya cause any serious problems and there's no specific treatment or cure for chikungunya.
The fastest way to cure and recover from chikungunya is to get plenty of rest, drink plenty of fluids, use analgesics and antipyretics and take NSAID medications that can help with acute pain and fever associated with chikungunya.
The 3 symptoms of chikungunya are joint pain, fever and fatigue.
Other symptoms of chikungunya are rash, joint swelling, muscle pain and headache.
The symptoms of chikungunya typically begin 3 to 7 days after you've been infected by a a mosquito that bit you.
Chikungunya is not a malaria although malaria is caused through the bite of a mosquito but malaria is spread through the bite from an Anopheles mosquito and chikungunya as well as dengue is transmitted through the bite from an Aedes mosquito.
Those who are most likely to get chikungunya are older adults 65 years of age or older, people with underlying medical conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension and neonates exposed intrapartum.
Chikungunya is not contagious like other viruses as you only get chikungunya through the bite of the mosquito called the Aedes aegypti mosquito and the Aedes albopictus mosquito.
The Chikungunya virus cannot be and is not transmitted from person to person.
The difference between chikungunya and dengue virus is chikungunya virus is caused by a Togaviridae alphavirus and Dengue virus is caused by a Flavirideae flavivirus.
However dengue and chikungunya are carried by the same type of mosquito but are caused by different viruses.
The incubation period for the chikungunya virus is 1 to 12 days and the duration of the virus ranges from 1 week to 2 weeks.
The chikungunya virus causes severe joint pain and fever and can also cause other symptoms such as joint swelling, muscle pain, nausea, headache, fatigue and rash.
The chikungunya virus does go away and most people recover within a week from chikungunya although some people have joint pain for months or sometimes longer.
In frail older adults chikungunya virus may even lead to death.
You can get chikungunya in the US as it's a mosquito borne illness and mosquitoes are common in the U.S.
Anywhere there are mosquitoes there is a risk of getting chikungunya.
The virus that causes chikungunya is the chikungunya virus (CHIKV), which is an RNA virus in the alphavirus genus of the family Togaviridae.
Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease that you contract from mosquitoes when they bite you.
Symptoms of chikungunya usually appear within a week of infection.
Fever and joint pain come on suddenly and muscle pain, headache, fatigue, and rash also may occur when a person is infected with chikungunya.
Chikungunya virus is an alphavirus, which is a genus in the Togaviridae family of viruses3-6.
The family is comprised of enveloped, singled-stranded RNA viruses10.
Dengue virus is in the genus flavivirus in the family Flaviviridae1-3.
Viruses of the flavivirus genus are linear, single- stranded, positive-sense RNA11.
Most people infected with chikungunya feel better within a week.
However, joint pain can be severe and disabling and may persist for months.
Death from chikungunya is rare.
Swelling and pain is high in Chikungunya as compared to that in Dengue.
Chikungunya can cause tremendous joint pain.
Whereas Dengue can cause bleeding in some cases, breathing problems, etc.
The name chikungunya derives from a word in the Kimakonde language, meaning “to become contorted”.
The good news is chikungunya rarely causes serious problems or death.
Many people get better within a couple of weeks.
But others have joint and muscle pain that can last for months or years after they've been infected with the virus.
Home remedies for chikungunya include.
Epsom salt soak.
Turmeric.
Ginger.
Coconut water.
Tulsi (Basil Leaves)
Sunflower seeds and Honey.
In the case of chikungunya, the platelet count may drop slightly and can be characterized by the platelet count which is lower than 150,000 platelets per microliter of blood.