Orange County Health Officials Warn of Potential for Chikungunya Spread
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
By: Matthew Peddie

July 30th, 2014 | WMFE, Orlando- Orange County health officials say there's a risk that chikungunya could spread to Central Florida. So far there have been just two locally acquired cases of the disease in Florida, but officials are worried about a potential outbreak.

Chikungunya first appeared in the Western Hemisphere in December 2013.

Since then there have been over 430,000 recorded cases in the Caribbean, and this month two people were bitten by infected mosquitoes in South Florida.

Dr. Tom Breaud, who manages the Orange County Mosquito control program, says the rapid spread of the disease has taken officials by surprise.

“So it really exploded. And unlike encephalitis like we have here, this does not involve birds. It’s just mosquito-to-person-to –mosquito-to person transmission. So this is kind of new territory for us.” 

The disease is spread by two species of so-called ‘day biting’ mosquitoes- the Asian Tiger and the Yellow Fever mosquito.

There’s no vaccine or cure for the virus, which causes a high fever and often severe joint pain, but is rarely fatal.

Dr. Breaud say the best prevention is to make sure there’s no place on your property for mosquitoes to breed – that means emptying out any standing water from "cans or buckets or birdbaths or boat-tarps or gutters."

"They’ve been found even in potato chip bags that have been discarded," says Breaud. 

Breaud says a spraying program would have limited use in controlling the two species of mosquito- which is why Central Florida residents need to help out by keeping their properties clear of standing water.