Chikungunya cases on the rise in Karachi

KARACHI: The scare of Chikungunya turned into a bigger threat, as only this month alone, 67 people fell victim to the disease.

Director Health KMC Dr Mohammed Taufiq, during a press conference gave details on the spread of the disease in the city.

There exists the danger of an increase in cases and the citizens need to be cautious in this regard, he said.

Current year, 3,462 suspected cases of Chikungunya emerged, he said.

Director Health said that several times the issue of cleanliness has been raised before the Karachi Municipal Corporation.

Dr Taufiq said that one mosquito acts as a vector for all three; Malaria, Dengue and Chikungunya.

He said that the disease is not an endemic yet but precautionary measures are necessary such as use of nets.

The disease is spread through mosquitoes and characterised by severe muscle/joint pain, nausea, headache, fatigue and also body rash.

The symptoms are similar to dengue and malaria and can be misdiagnosed.

The disease takes from few days to weeks to fade away and in most cases patients have chances of complete recovery.