US plans to issue travel notice for China as chikungunya cases rise

THE US CENTERS for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is planning to issue a travel notice for China as chikungunya infections rise in the country, a spokesperson told Bloomberg News.

China has nearly 5,000 cases of the mosquito-borne illness since one infection was found in early July. Guangdong, a province near Hong Kong, has recorded almost 3,000 cases in the last week.

“CDC is aware of the reported chikungunya outbreak in Guangdong Province in China and is currently assessing the size and extent of the outbreak,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

The Atlanta-based agency issues for people to be aware of the risks for certain outbreaks and natural disasters and provide preventive actions they can take, including which vaccines are available.

Chikungunya can cause an abrupt fever and severe joint pain, especially in the hands and feet, according to the .

The World Health Organization (WHO) issued an early in July because of an ongoing outbreak in the Indian Ocean that has spread to other countries, adding that it is seeing early signs of an epidemic — reminiscent of a major epidemic that swept across the Indian Ocean in 2004 and 2005.

Some 240,000 cases and 90 chikungunya-related deaths have been recorded in since the start of the year in at least 16 countries, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

The disease tends to circulate in tropical and subtropical regions. US cases tend to be acquired from travel; the country has not a locally acquired infection since 2019.

Currently, the CDC has issued a level 2 notice for US travelers to practice “enhanced precautions” for seven countries including Kenya and Madagascar.

The CDC recommends that most people traveling to an outbreak area get vaccinated for chikungunya. However, in May, the CDC and the US Food and Drug Administration for the vaccine Ixchiq — which includes a live component of the virus — for people over the age of 60 following reports of�� serious adverse events in that age group.

European regulators the vaccine’s use in older adults. A separate vaccine without a live virus component is approved for people over the age of 12 in the US.

One of the best ways to prevent chikungunya is to protect yourself from mosquito bites, said , a professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. That includes wearing clothing that covers your limbs and using bug spray.

Other mosquito-borne illnesses have increased due to climate change and global travel.

In 2024, the US saw a record number of . The CDC issued an alert for ongoing risk and travel recommendations in March.

Dengue and Zika are transmitted by the Aedes species mosquito, the same mosquito that can spread chikungunya. Nearly 100 cases of West Nile virus have been detected in the US this year, according to the .

As the bugs continue to spread, the WHO expects five to be at risk for mosquito-borne infections by 2050.�� — Bloomberg