Chikungunya Hits Mataram Residents: Lombok

I considered myself fairly clued up regarding most of the ailments that one can contract when travelling in Indonesia but that was until I read an article in the JP about a fever called Chikungunya.

After doing some research it seems that it is quite prolific. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about Chikungunya, and here’s the article from the JP:

Some 60 residents in Pagutan, Mataram, have contracted chikungunya in the past week.

Like dengue fever, chikungunya is carried by mosquitoes and is characterized by extremely high fevers.

On Wednesday, 15 Darul Fallah Pagutan Islamic Boarding School students displayed symptoms of the disease.

“Initially, residents living around the school had contracted chikungunya over the past three days. It now effects 15 students,” said Baidawi, an employee at the school. Staff earlier believed the disease to be a common fever, she said.

Head of Mataram Health Office’s disease prevention division, Kartika, said the disease’s spread was caused by the current monsoon season, in which mosquitoes thrive.