Chikungunya: time to change the paradigm of a non-fatal disease

Abstract

According to recent advances in mortality trends interpretation, there is no doubt that chikungunya may be a major cause of death, of great magnitude including for previously healthy and young patients.

So, why is there so much resistance to admitting that chikungunya can lead the patient to death?

We believe that the difficulties in reconizing that chikungunya is a cause of death are maintained by the official public health, the World Health Organization states in Fact Sheet about chikungunya in april 2017 that “Serious complications are not common, but in older people, the disease can contribute to the cause of death”. In addition, ECDC (European Center for Disease Prevention and Control) documents , we quote here the Fact Sheet about Chikungunya which states that “Despite it being considered as a non-fatal disease, deaths have been partly attributed to the virus”.
Recognizing the importance of severe acute forms and deaths from chikungunya will make it possible to better define priorities for investment in the prevention and treatment of this disease.