MANILA – Chikungunya cases in the Philippines spiked by 382 percent in 2023, data from the Department of Health (DOH) showed on Wednesday, Dec. 27.
Based on the DOH’s epidemic-prone disease case surveillance report, 2,889 cases of the mosquito-borne viral infection were recorded in 2023, up from only 600 in 2022.
The World Health Organization said that chikungunya may cause fever, severe joint pain, joint swelling, muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue, and rash.
Fifteen cases were recorded from Nov. 25 to Dec. 2 alone.
The Cordillera Administrative Region had the most significant increase with 1,146 cases so far this year, from just four in 2022.
Mimaropa logged 465 cases from only nine in 2022, while cases in Cagayan Valley jumped to 394 cases this year from only two recorded cases last year.
Ilocos Region has 374 cases so far this year, followed by the Zamboanga Peninsula with 151 cases, and Northern Mindanao with 111 cases.
Notably, the Zamboanga Peninsula had zero cases of chikungunya in 2022.
According to DOH data, which were recorded from Jan. 1 to Dec. 2 this year, no patient has died due to the mosquito-transmitted disease.
Meanwhile, dengue fever cases plummeted nationwide by 23 percent this year, with 195,603 cases logged so far, from 252,700 in 2022. (Zeus Legaspi © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
