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Review
16.
Threats and re-emergence of chickungunya fever in Indian
sub-continent -
S. Mahajan, Dalkeet Chhabra and S. M. Rashid
Vet World. 2009; 2(1): 40-42
Abstract
Zoonoses are among the most frequent and dreaded risk to which
mankind is exposed today, human health is inextricably linked to
animal health and production. Over the past 6 years, a number of
zoonotic and vector borne viral diseases were recorded in
South-east Asia and the Western Pacific and there was sudden
upsurge in the number of emerging and re-emerging zoonotic
diseases in Indian Sub-continent and Chikungunya fever is
one of them. The precise reasons for the re-emergence of
Chikungunya in the Indian subcontinent as well as the other
small countries in the southern Indian Ocean are an enigma.
Although, it is well recognized that re-emergence of viral
infections are due to a variety of social, environmental,
behavioural and biological changes, which of these contributed
to the re-emergence of Chikungunya virus would be
interesting to unravel. Chikungunya is generally spread
through bites of infected mosquitoes; mosquitoes become infected
when they feed on a animal infected with CHIK virus. Monkey and
possibly other wild animals may serve as reservoirs of
infection.
Keywords:
Re-emergence, Threat, Chickungunya, Fever, Zoonosis, Health,
Disease, Monkey, Virus.
