Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Khaleel has urged caution as the viral disease Chikungunya spreads rapidly in the Maldives, especially the Greater Male' area.
Chikungunya is a viral disease transmitted to humans through mosquitoes infected with the chikungunya virus.
In a post on X, the Minister said that so far this month, 59 cases of Chikungunya have been reported in the Greater Male' Area alone.
The Minister said with the rainy season ahead, the number of mosquitoes that spread the disease will increase if special measures are not taken.
He also said the easiest way to prevent mosquito-borne diseases such as chicken pox and dengue is to destroy mosquito breeding grounds. He urged the public to pay special attention to this.
While Chikungunya is not transmitted from one person to another, the most common symptom is an abrupt onset of fever, often accompanied by joint pain.
Other symptoms include muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue, and rash. Severe joint pain usually lasts a few days but can persist for months or even years. Serious complications are uncommon, but atypical severe cases can cause long-term symptoms and even death, especially in older people and children under one-year-old.
There is no vaccine or antiviral drug treatment for chikungunya. Treatment is focused on relieving the symptoms.
