Chikungunya in Kenya - Mombasa

18 Jan 2018

On January 17 2018, Reliefweb reported that the World Health Organization (WHO) is helping the Kenyan Government to contain an outbreak of chikungunya in Mombasa.

The outbreak has affected all the six-sub counties in Mombasa: Mvita, Kisauni, Nyali, Changamwe, Jomvu and Likoni. Most cases have been reported from Mvita. The Ministry of Health had reported a total of 69 cases up to 4 January 2018.

Advice for Travellers

No vaccine is available against chikungunya. Avoidance of mosquito bites is the only reliable means of prevention. Methods of bite avoidance include:

• Wearing long, loose, lightly coloured clothing to cover up the skin.
• The use of insect repellant containing DEET  applied to any exposed skin.
• The use of permethrin, impregnated mosquito nets.
• The use of air conditioning if available and/or mesh screening of windows and doors.
• Eradication of mosquito breeding sites around the home (e.g. open containers, old tyres or flower pots that may collect water).

For further information see Chikungunya Fever.