Chikungunya is a serious global health concern with a major outbreak of over 7,000 cases currently unfolding in China. Professor Tom Solomon, Director of The Pandemic Institute, answers some questions on how the virus is spread and the likelihood of it causing a global pandemic.

Q. How serious is the chikungunya outbreak in China?
A. This is a large and significant outbreak of chikungunya virus in China, posing a major public health concern due to the scale and rapid transmission in affected areas.

Q. What are the symptoms, and who is most at risk?
A. Chikungunya typically causes a sudden fever, joint pain, headache, and rash. While most people recover within a week, some develop severe complications such as encephalitis (brain inflammation), and a proportion experience long-term arthritis lasting months or even years. The elderly, infants, and individuals with underlying health conditions are most at risk of serious illness.

Q. How does chikungunya spread?
A. The virus is spread by infected Aedes mosquitoes, primarily Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, which are prevalent in tropical regions and increasingly found in parts of southern Europe.

Q. Could chikungunya become a global threat?
A. While chikungunya can cause widespread outbreaks across countries, it is not transmitted directly between people, so it is unlikely to cause a global pandemic on the scale of COVID-19.

Q. What is the risk to the UK or UK travellers?
A. There is a small risk that someone infected abroad could return to the UK while still carrying the virus. However, local spread is unlikely at present, as the key mosquito vectors are not yet firmly established in the UK. Still, climate change is driving the northward expansion of these mosquitoes, increasing potential future risk.

Q. Is there a vaccine, and who should get it?
A. Yes – new vaccines for chikungunya are now available. However, due to reported side effects in people over 65, current recommendations focus on travellers under 65 visiting high-risk regions, such as parts of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean, where Aedes mosquitoes are widespread.

For more information, visit the WHO website.