Although no cases of Chikungunya have been detected in Ho Chi Minh City, the health sector has determined that this is an infectious disease that has been circulating in Vietnam, and needs to continue to be monitored and prevented proactively. The disease is caused by the Chikungunya virus, transmitted through mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus), the same mosquito that causes dengue and Zika dengue fever.
First discovered in 1952 in Indonesia ( Africa), Chikungunya often flare up in tropical areas. The virus has now appeared in more than 110 countries and territories, including Europe. Flies infected with viruses that transmit disease to humans when bitten; incubation period is 3-7 days. Patients often have a sudden high fever, severe joint pain, rash, muscle pain, headache, and fatigue. Most cases of joint pain go away on their own after a few days or a few weeks, but some cases of joint pain last for many months. The disease has no specific medicine or vaccine.
Studies in Vietnam show that the Chikungunya virus once circulated in Vietnam. In the period of 2010-2014, research by OUCRU and the Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases recorded 4 cases of Chikungunya infection in 8,105 children with acute fever, all of whom belonged to the ECSA strain, similar to the strain discovered in Cambodia in 2011. 2015 serum research showed that 10% of samples in Ho Chi Minh City and An Giang had Chikungunya antibodies, 7.97% in Dak Lak and 3.72% in Hue. This shows that the disease has been transmitted mildly in the community since the 1980s.
From 2017-2019, the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City and Nagasaki University (Japan) surveyed 31 provinces and cities, detecting 46.4% of samples with antibodies and 27.7% of samples PCR positive for Chikungunya, confirming the disease in circulation in Vietnam.
Ho Chi Minh City has maintained monitoring of Chikungunya, Zika, Dengue viruses at many locations since the Zika epidemic in 2016. The results have not recorded any new cases. Since May 2025, the Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City continues to monitor in Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh, Kien Giang (now An Giang), and has not detected any cases of Chikungunya or Zika.
The health sector warns that the risk of re-appearance of Chikungunya still exists, especially in the context of increasing dengue fever. The most effective disease prevention measure today is to avoid mosquito bites and kill Agency - also measures to prevent dengue fever.
Disease prevention measures include:
Sleep on your stomach, wear long-sleeved clothes, and use mosquito repellent, especially during the day. Remove items containing stagnant water such as bottles, tires, water bottles, and steering wheel. Change the bottle and pot of ornamental plants every week; cover the water container. Coordinate with the health sector in the campaign to kill mosquito larvae and spray mosquito repellent.
When there are symptoms of fever, joint pain, rash... after returning from the epidemic area, you need to see a doctor immediately.
