Réunion: Chikungunya epidemic continues to explode, hospitalizations and ER visits also increasing
Health officials on the island of La Réunion report the chikungunya epidemic continues, adding 6,289 confirmed cases the last week of March.
Since the beginning of the year, 27,521 confirmed indigenous cases have been reported. With a population of nearly 900,000, the current outbreak has affected about 3 percent of population.
During the week reported, the following municipalities were affected by a notable increase in new cases: Le Tampon (800 cases), Saint-Paul (900 cases) , Saint-Denis (750 cases) and Saint-Pierre (600 cases).
Emergency department activity continues to increase with 310 admissions for the week.
The number of cases hospitalized for more than 24 hours for chikungunya to date is 167.
Podcast: Chikungunya with Roger Nasci, PhD
Most hospitalized patients had at least one risk factor for severe disease related to comorbidity, age, or pregnancy. Hospitalization for chikungunya monitoring during pregnancy was reported in 33 pregnant women, and 28 infants under 6 months of age were hospitalized for short-term monitoring without associated severity.
36 serious cases have been hospitalized, including 19 adults over 65 and 16 infants under 2 months old since the start of the epidemic.
The first phase of the vaccination campaign has been launched with the IXCHIQ vaccine from the Valneva laboratory . It is available free of charge to people aged 65 and over with comorbidities (high blood pressure, diabetes, cardiovascular, respiratory, renal, hepatic and neurovascular diseases, etc.) and who have not previously contracted chikungunya.
The vaccine is administered in a single injection and can be administered with a medical prescription from a doctor, nurse or pharmacist.
The IXCHIQ vaccine is not recommended for pregnant women at this stage. It is also contraindicated for immunocompromised individuals.
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