Seroprevalence of Chikungunya Cases in a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Retrospective Study

Purpose: The Chikungunya virus, an Alpha member of the Togaviridae family, is the cause of chikungunya and is spread via the Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquito vector. A chikungunya (CHIK) outbreak resurfaced in several Asian countries in 2005–2006. A widespread outbreak of Chikungunya cases occurred in India in 2006, and the disease continues to be a serious public health concern today. India saw a signicant epidemic in 2016, and with 27.3 thousand cases in 2021, Gujarat has the second-highest frequency. Due to the dengue outbreak in a country like India, the chikungunya viral infection is still remains underdiagnosed. Therefore, it is important to know the seroprevalence of chikungunya. A retrospective study was conducted in the Microbiology Department of Government Materials & Methods: Medical College, Surat from January 2022 to December 2022. Serum samples of 467 suspected cases of Chikungunya fever were tested for Chikungunya IgM antibodies by ELISA – IgM Capture ELISA. Out of 467 samples, 79 (16 Results: .9%) samples were positive for Chikungunya IgM antibodies. Maximum incidence was seen in the late monsoon and post monsoon months, with females (52%) were more affected than males (48%). The most affected age group was 31-40 years. Conclusion: The seroprevalence of Chikungunya cases in our study was 16.9% with high prevalence in the late monsoon and post monsoon months. This reiterates the fact that Chikungunya is a serious health threat and highlights the need for effective measures to lessen the illness's severity and control vectors to prevent the transmission of infection.