KANNAPOLIS, NC — A summertime scourge is more than just a pest problem. North Carolina mosquitoes could soon be carrying a new virus.
The state is up to ten confirmed cases of Chikungunya, with the first infected Cabarrus County resident bringing it back from the Caribbean.
“You get fever. You get joint pain. But generally within about a week you get better,” says Dr. William Pilkington, CEO and Public Health Director at Cabarrus Health Alliance.
A mosquito bites you, you get sick, and there’s no cure.
A Cabarrus County resident who traveled to the Caribbean came back with Chikungunya. All the cases in North Carolina involve people traveling outside the country, but Dr. Pilkington sees that changing soon.
“We now have two domestically acquired cases in Florida, so the likelihood is that we are going to see it continuing to spread.”
Health officials say you need to protect yourself.
“I got a few mosquito bites yesterday, so hopefully they were just the regular kind,” says Salisbury resident Shamika Smith.
It’s important to be prepared. Drain any standing water near your home, clean out those gutters and break out the bug spray.
“Wear long sleeves, long pants and use repellents,” says Dr. Pilkington. “Those are kind of the basic things, especially if you’re elderly.”
China Grove resident Kathleen Powlas plans to protect herself and her granddaughter.
“Me and the kids. I don’t want to get sick. Yeah, and she’s pretty well allergic to them. They get big welts and stuff. So, yeah, we spray,” says Powlas.
“I have two young children, one on the way, and totally not interested in testing out the new disease,” says Smith. “So we’ll get some. But I did hear it had to have DEET or something specific in the spray.”
More than 230 Americans have been diagnosed with Chikungunya this year. In all but two of the cases, the victims were infected outside of the country.
Dying from Chikungunya is rare. While most people recover in about a week, some suffer long-term joint pain.
