Cases of the Tourists' Virus Skyrocket in the UK

On Friday, Public Health England has reported close to 200 new cases of the virus chikungunya. Public Health England reports that 197 British tourists have been diagnosed with chikungunya in 2014.  This is an increase of 432 per cent increase from September 16, when just 37 cases had been reported in the UK. The chikungunya virus, transmitted through infected mosquito bites, has spread to more than 30 Caribbean nations since it was first reported by the World Health Organization in December 2013, when the first case was discovered in St Martin, a French overseas territory. There are now more than 700,000 suspected cases and approximately 120 deaths reported. Additionally, in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported more than 1,600 cases of chikunguya among returning travelers as of November 4th, and there has been in a significant surge in the number of cases in Canada as well. Meanwhile, the number of cases in Caribbean countries continues to increase, with the Dominican Republic, Guadeloupe, Haiti and Martinique bearing the greatest burden of new cases.

 According to one official at Public Health England, Dr. Tim Brooks, "Chikungunya is now a common infection in travelers from the Caribbean, and is 

currently reported more frequently than dengue."

Read more here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-2853247/Mosquito-virus-cases-soar-432-UK-holidaymakers-return-Caribbean-major-chikungunya-outbreak-spreading.html

By Kasiemobi Udo-okoye