Chikungunya has become the biggest scare in the world currently. After the epidemics of dengue and SARS, now chikungunya has grabbed the attention of people of the world. In some parts of the world, chikungunya is also called as Chicken Guinea, though this is a misnomer as chikungunya has nothing to do with chicken. Chicken Guinea is just an Anglicization of the word chikungunya.

The word chikungunya is etymologically rooted in the Makonde language of Tanzania, where it means ‘that which bends up’. This name is because of the painful symptoms which cause the patient’s joints to curve in an upwards position. The origins of chikungunya can be traced to 1952 in central Africa from where it has become rampant in Asia currently. The disease manifests itself as an epidemic, and if uncontrolled, it might turn into a pandemic.

The latest epidemic of chikungunya is currently going on in South India. The heavy floods in South India in the monsoon region have been responsible for the widespread outbreak of the disease. Southern states of India such as Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been the most drastically hit. A lot of research is going on in India with respect to chikungunya, in both the allopathic and the Ayurvedic fields. Most people have found Ayurveda to be a solution for chikungunya.

The condition known as sandhi jwara in Sanskrit has the similar symptoms to chikungunya. Sandhi jwara literally means ‘pain in joints’ and this is one of the primary aspects of chikungunya. For this reason, chikungunya can be equated with sandhi jwara.

Chikungunya is a viral disease that is very similar in symptoms and etiology to the more popular disease, dengue fever. The virus responsible for chikungunya is alphavirus, which belongs to the togoviridae family. This virus is transmitted through mosquito bites. Only a specific type of mosquito is a vector, i.e. carrier for chikungunya. This is the aedes aegypti mosquito, which is active only in the daytime. The aedes aegypti mosquito is the same mosquito that is responsible for the transmission of dengue fever among humans. The condition of chikungunya is generally not fatal, and it can be remedied within five to seven days with proper treatment. The basic characteristic of the disease is a fever along with an arthritic-type of pain in the joints (which has given it its Sanskrit name).

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Chikungunya is a viral disease transmitted through the agency of mosquitoes. The responsible chikungunya virus is the alphavirus, which is carried by the aedes aegypti breed of mosquito. Hence, after malaria, filaria and dengue, chikungunya has become one more reason to exterminate mosquitoes.

The prime method of spread of chikungunya is through stagnated water. The aedes aegypti mosquito lays its eggs only in stagnated water. This explains why there is a widespread outbreak of chikungunya in India currently, which has just recovered from heavy floods in July-August.

Ayurveda treats chikungunya as a vata dosha disorder. Vata is the air element of our body, which is represented by the air that we breathe; the dissolved gases in our blood, etc. A healthy person has a proper balance of the vata dosha with the other two doshas, viz. pitta dosha and kapha dosha. But when the vata dosha is vitiated, then disease conditions may set in. Chikungunya is one of such diseases, which are caused due to an alleviation of the vata dosha.

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Chikungunya symptoms begin almost immediately after the viral infection. Some of the symptoms are:-

• Fever with very high temperature
• Acute pain all over the body
• Sharp pain in the joints accompanied by swelling
• Severe headache
• Profuse rashes
• Conjunctivitis
• Loss of taste in the tongue
• Mouth ulcers

The fever of chikungunya normally comes back to normal within two to three days, but the other symptoms persist for over a week or more. The fever is quite different from normal fever since it is accompanied by chills and feelings of nausea and vomiting.

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In almost all the chikungunya deaths reported till date, the chikungunya virus itself has not been responsible for any of the deaths. The chikungunya virus has the potential to destroy the resistance system of the body, due to which any underlying medical condition is exacerbated. It is this complication that causes the death of the patient.

Chikungunya could have complications in people who are elderly. As their bodily resistances are already weak, an onset of chikungunya in them could cause cerebral problems like dementia and paralysis and kidney disorders. Similarly, chikungunya is more fatal in children than in adults. The reason is that children are not able to pinpoint the symptoms exactly and it may be late before the disease is actually diagnosed in them.

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Chikungunya is a highly infectious disease through the agency of the aedes aegypti mosquito. If this mosquito bites an infected person, then the virus gets transferred into its body. The virus does not infect the mosquito itself; but on the contrary, the mosquito helps the mosquito to become stronger within its body. Now when the mosquito bites a healthy person, the strengthened virus is now transferred into the body of the healthy person. Thus the healthy person gets affected.

The mosquito that acts as the carrier of the virus is active only in the daytime. It normally bites people during either dawn or dusk. Hence this is the prime time when the chikungunya virus is transmitted into the bodies of healthy people.

The aedes aegypti mosquito is quite area-bound. In fact, the mosquito does not leave its natural habitat, i.e. the stagnant water in which it breeds, by more than a few meters. Thus, chikungunya is transmitted into the nearby habitat first.

Chikungunya spreads so quickly that it may turn into an epidemic. Since the year 2004, there have been epidemics of chikungunya in different parts of Southwest Asia. If there is an epidemic of chikungunya going around, it is necessary to take precautions in order to protect oneself.

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There are several methods for preventing chikungunya. The following guidelines must be strictly followed in case chikungunya is in the air:-

• All stagnant water must be treated and removed. Stagnant water is where the infecting mosquito aedes aegypti breeds.
• Use insect repellants such as DEET or promythrin in the vicinity in case there is an outspread of chikungunya.
• It is necessary to wear long pants and long sleeves in case you are planning to visit some area that is dirty or secluded. Even people who are already suffering from chikungunya must wear full clothes in order to prevent mosquitoes from biting them and further infecting more people.
• The doors and windows of the houses must be kept closed, especially in the dawn and dusk periods. This is the feeding period of the aedes aegypti mosquito.

The aedes aegypti mosquito, considered as the prime culprit of causing the disease, is actually a localized insect. In its whole lifetime, it does not travel even a quarter of a kilometer. Hence, it is not the mosquito that is the cause of the epidemic. Chikungunya becomes an epidemic through people who travel from an affected area to an unaffected area. For this reason, it is very necessary to regulate travelers, especially those who are emigrating from a place that has several cases of chikungunya.

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Chikungunya is considered to be primarily a vata dosha disorder. For this reason, the diet that is prescribed for a person with the ailment is a vata pacifying diet. The following tips must be kept in mind:-

• There must be a good proportion of fluids in the diet in the form of soups, gravies, dals, etc. This will take care of dehydration that occurs in some people with chikungunya.
• A normal diet can be had, but it must be easily digestible, and preferably vegetarian. Green leafy vegetables are the better choice.
• Oil must not be used as it could aggravate coughs.
• Fruits must be had, but avoid cold fruits such as oranges, sweet limes, watermelons, etc. Apples and plantains are the best fruits to have during chikungunya.
• Tea and coffee must be avoided as long as the fever lasts.

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