Taiwan chikungunya cases highest since 2007
The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Taiwan CDC) reported two new cases of imported chikungunya virus in the country today.
The two additional cases include a a Taiwanese male in his 30s and a foreign female in her 30s. Both were infected in Indonesia.
Both demonstrated symptoms of fever and others when entering the country and were diagnosed after being intercepted and tested at the airport quarantine station. Health authorities have completed prevention and control work such as density surveys of mosquitoes and elimination of breeding sources at the residences of the aforementioned cases.
According to statistics from the CDC, as of June 23 this year (2025), there have been a total of 13 cases of chikungunya virus, all of which were imported from abroad. The number of cases is the highest in the same period since it was listed as a statutory infectious disease in October 2007.
The most infected countries are Indonesia (11 cases), followed by the Philippines and Sri Lanka (1 case each).
The CDC explained that the mosquito vector of chikungunya is the same as dengue fever, and it is transmitted by the bite of the virus-carrying Aedes albopictus or Aedes aegypti mosquito. The incubation period is 2 to 12 days. The viremia period (contagious period) is from 2 days before the onset of the disease to 5 days after the onset of the disease. Symptoms of infection include sudden fever, joint pain or arthritis (especially the small joints of the hands and feet, wrists and ankles), headache, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, muscle pain, and about half of the patients will have a rash; the symptoms last for 3 to 7 days.
The CDC called for the most effective way to prevent chikungunya to remove the breeding source. The public should regularly check the indoor and outdoor environment and thoroughly remove stagnant water containers to prevent the breeding of vectors. The CDC also reminds people who plan to travel to areas where chikungunya is prevalent to take mosquito-proof measures, wear light-colored long-sleeved clothes, and use mosquito repellents approved by government agencies that contain DEET, Picaridin, or IR3535. If you feel you may be infected when entering the country, you should contact the airport quarantine personnel; if you have suspected symptoms after returning to the country, you should seek medical treatment as soon as possible and proactively inform TOCC (travel history, occupational history, contact history, and group history) to facilitate early notification, diagnosis, and treatment.