After seven weeks without any new cases of the mosquito-borne chikungunya, Cayman health officials advised Wednesday that a new confirmed case had been imported.
The male George Town resident began showing symptoms of the debilitating virus on Sept. 2 after returning home from Jamaica, where 19 cases have been reported, according to the Caribbean Public Health Agency.
The Mosquito Response & Control Unit sent three teams to the resident’s home Wednesday morning to carry out fogging and mosquito larvae pellet treatments in an effort to kill any mosquitoes in the area.
“We are keeping vigilant and monitoring the situation,” said MRCU director William Petrie.
The George Town resident has been symptom-free for more than a week and is no longer considered infectious, according to health officials.
“The chikungunya virus is transmitted by mosquitoes biting infected persons during the first week of illness,” health officials said in the latest update.
Since June 25, when the virus was first reported, there have been six confirmed cases of chikungunya in the Cayman Islands, with one case acquired locally.
Blood samples for five new suspected cases were also sent for testing at the Caribbean Public Health Agency in Trinidad on Sept. 15.
Of a total of 36 chikungunya cases investigated in Cayman, six have come back positive, 23 negative, and two inconclusive.
According to health officials, 10,972 cases of chikungunya have been reported in the Caribbean, along with 690,309 suspected cases.
Symptoms
Both dengue and chikungunya are transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Symptoms of chikungunya include fever, joint pains, muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue and rash, while dengue symptoms are fever, headache, muscle aches, joint pains, pain behind the eyes, and rash.
Anyone experiencing these symptoms and who believes they may have been bitten by an infected mosquito is advised to contact the Public Health Department on 244-2621.
Related Videos
