THE chikungunya fever is not contagious, that is, it is not transmitted from person to person. The only form of transmission is through the bite of the mosquito Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus infected by CHIKV virus.
The mosquito acquires chikungunya virus (CHIKV) by stinging an infected person during the period of viremia, ranging from one day before the onset of fever to the fifth day of illness, when the individual still has the virus in the bloodstream.
The symptoms usually appear 2 to 4 days after the mosquito bite, and can reach 14 days in some cases. It's called incubation period of the chikungunya fever. Once infected, the person becomes immune to the disease for the rest of their lives.
Not everyone who gets bitten by the infected mosquito gets sick, there are cases where the person does not manifest symptoms.
Another possibility of transmission of the virus is from mother to fetus during delivery, if this coincides with the period of viremia of the mother.
There is also no evidence of chikungunya fever virus transmission through breast milk.
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The main symptoms of chikungunya fever are high fever (over 38.5 ° C) sudden onset and severe joint pain, especially in the hands and feet, in addition to headache and muscle pain
O treatment of chikungunya fever aims to only alleviate the symptoms through medicines for fever and anti-inflammatory for joint pains, as there is no specific treatment for the disease. There is still no vaccine against chikungunya fever.
