US Virgin Islands Confirms Local Chikungunya Cases - Epidemic declared

[Gert van der Hoek]

Posted on Wednesday, 06.11.14

US Virgin Islands confirms 1st chikungunya case

CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands -- A mosquito-borne virus that has been spreading rapidly in the Caribbean has made its way to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Health officials in the U.S. Caribbean territory said Wednesday they have confirmed a locally transmitted case of chikungunya.

Health Commissioner Darice Plaskett says authorities are working closely with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies to "prevent the spread of the virus."

Read more: Miami Herald

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms 1st Chikungunya Case - Locally Transmitted

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms 1st Chikungunya Case - Locally Transmitted

Chikungunya spreads on St. Thomas, St. John

BY ALDETH LEWIN (DAILY NEWS STAFF)
Published: August 30, 2014

ST. THOMAS - A V.I. Alert went out Friday warning residents that the V.I. Health Department has confirmed 25 cases of chikungunya in the St. Thomas-St. John District.

St. Croix has no confirmed cases.

Since June, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been helping the V.I. Health Department beef up its surveillance, investigation and diagnostic capacity, while also providing education to health care workers about the clinical management of the mosquito-borne virus.

The CDC and local Health Department have been offering free blood testing to confirm the cases as patients come into their doctors' offices with symptoms.

More: Virgin Islands Daily News

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Chikungunya Cases - Locally Transmitted

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Chikungunya Cases - Locally Transmitted

Chikungunya inundates hospital, doctor's offices

BY ALDETH LEWIN (DAILY NEWS STAFF)

Published: September 9, 2014

ST. THOMAS - While the Centers for Disease Control have confirmed only 30 cases of chikungunya in the territory so far, doctors offices and the emergency room at Schneider Hospital are overflowing with sick people displaying symptoms of the virus.

Schneider Regional Medical Center's Chief Nursing Officer Linda Bigelow said for the last two weeks about 45 to 50 people have been coming to the emergency room each day with the symptoms of chikungunya. In the last few days, that number has climbed to 85 to 90 people a day, she said.

"We really and truly have been quite busy," Bigelow said.

The packed emergency room, as well as runs on pain medicines and bug sprays at local stores and heavy patient loads seen by local physicians are indicators that chikungunya is on the verge of becoming an epidemic in the territory.

Currently, there have been 28 confirmed cases on St. Thomas, two confirmed cases on St. John, and while St. Croix has not registered any confirmed cases according to the V.I. Health Department, it has seen 22 suspected cases.

More: Virgin Islands Daily News

 

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Local Chikungunya Cases - Epidemic declared

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Local Chikungunya Cases - Epidemic declared

Epidemiologist declares chikungunya epidemic in V.I.

BY JENNY KANE (DAILY NEWS STAFF)

Published: September 17, 2014

ST. THOMAS - While the V.I. Health Department stood up to public criticism of its mitigation plan for the spread of chikungunya, a debilitating mosquito-borne virus, the department also declared that the territorial outbreak is officially an epidemic.

In fact, it has been an epidemic since May.

"As soon as we knew of the first case, it was an outbreak," said the Health Department's territorial epidemiologist, Dr. Esther Ellis.

An outbreak, Ellis said, is when more cases of a health concern occur than is expected at any one time. An epidemic, on the other hand, is when a doubling of cases occurs in a period of three weeks or less, she said.

The first confirmation of the virus in the U.S. Virgin Islands was May 20, according to health officials, who said that the person had traveled to Dominica, which reported confirmed cases prior.

"It's really the humans that move the virus," Ellis said.

Currently, the DOH has counted 514 suspected cases on St. Thomas, with 41 confirmed or probable; 25 suspected cases on St. Croix, with three confirmed or probable; and 13 suspected are on St. John, with two confirmed or probable.

More: Virgin Islands Daily News

 

[Shiloh]

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Local Chikungunya Cases - Epidemic declared

Source: http://virginislandsdailynews.com/news/chikungunya-cases-spike-on-st-croix-1.1787444


Chikungunya cases spike on St. Croix
By JENNY KANE (Daily News Staff)
Published: November 13, 2014

ST. THOMAS - While St. Thomians are seeing the last of chikungunya, Crucians have a way to go before they'll see the mosquito-borne virus begin to fade.

The spread of the virus, identified typically by a high fever, rash and joint pain and swelling, has slowed substantially in the last month and a half on St. Thomas, according to weekly reports from the V.I. Health Department.

The Health Department has been following the spread of the virus on St. Thomas for 42 weeks, with weeks 34 through 37 proving the worst. During week 36, the department reported a weekly record of more than 140 suspected cases.

During the most recently tracked week, from Oct. 12 though Oct. 18, the Health Department reported slightly more than 40 suspected cases, the fewest in 10 weeks.

On St. Croix, the virus presents a different picture.

"We are now seeing our exponential increase," said territorial epidemiologist Esther Ellis.

St. Croix is about 12 weeks behind St. Thomas in terms of its trend of cases, though its epidemic may not follow the same timeline as the one on St. Thomas...

 

[Shiloh]

Re: US Virgin Islands Confirms Local Chikungunya Cases - Epidemic declared

Source: http://stcroixsource.com/content/ne...-chikungunya-outbreak-st-thomas-cases-decline


St. Croix at Peak of Chikungunya Outbreak; St. Thomas Cases Decline
By Susan Ellis ? December 2, 2014

St. Thomas has likely seen beyond its peak of chikungunya cases, but on St. Croix residents may have not yet seen the worst of the mosquito-borne virus, the territory?s expert in tropical medicine told a standing room only audience Tuesday at the University of the Virgin Islands, Albert Sheen campus. The seminar was teleconferenced to St. Thomas and St. John...

...Currently there are 12 confirmed/probable cases reported on St. Croix and 374 other incidents of suspected chikungunya. The most affected neighborhoods are also those with high incidence of dengue: Williams Delight, Mon Bijou, Kingshill and Frederiksted.

According to Ellis, the Health Department has been spraying larvacides and has notified all schools of symptoms and care for patients.

On St. Thomas, there have been 102 confirmed or probable cases, and 857 suspected cases of the virus. St. John reports four probable/confirmed and 41 suspected cases.

One person has died, Ellis said, but had other severe medical issues that may have contributed to the fatality...