Personal preventive measures for travellers to affected areas
As no vaccine or medication is available, it is important to protect yourself from mosquito bites when staying in the affected areas in order to prevent becoming infected with the virus.
Chikungunya is a viral disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes to humans. The word ‘chikungunya’ means 'that which bends up', an allusion to the posture of the suffering patients. The most common symptom is joint pain.
Even though the disease is not endemic in Europe, in areas where the areas where the Ae. albopictus mosquito is established, local transmission may happen, as demonstrated by sporadic events since 2007
