"Scientists say there were 18.7 million chikungunya cases that exacted a total cost of nearly $50 billion over a decade."
"The mosquito-borne disease chikungunya has a higher global burden than previously estimated, an international team of researchers reports in BMJ Global Health.
The analysis concludes that between 2011 and 2020, there were 18.7 million chikungunya cases in 110 countries, costing the world nearly $50 billion over the decade.
Researchers used monitoring data from all countries reporting the disease during the study period, adjusting the numbers to reflect the likelihood that it is underreported. Then they calculated the disease’s cost across the globe, looking at expenses associated with direct medical care and estimating indirect costs like absenteeism because of the disease. They also calculated the disease’s health burden.
About 13,000 people died of chikungunya over the decade. The highest number of cases during the study period were in Brazil, the Dominican Republic and French Polynesia. Latin America and the Caribbean bore the highest costs, the researchers write, because of high case numbers and the disease’s “rapid expansion.”"
Erin Blakemore reports for the Washington Post November 7, 2024.
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