Chikungunya fever: an emerging viral infection threatening North America and Europe

Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, there has been a rapid rise in the number of cases of chikungunya. Initially limited to islands of the southwestern Indian Ocean, the virus has spread across Africa and into the islands of the Caribbean. Cutaneous symptoms include a morbilliform eruption, hyperpigmented macules, and aphthae-like ulcers. Patients often also experience fever and joint pain. We review the methods for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of this increasingly prevalent virus now emerging more commonly in Europe and North America.