Chikungunya virus: China reports 7,000 cases

The uptick in cases have prompted measures that are being compared to those taken during the pandemic.

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In Foshan city, which has been hit the hardest, chikungunya patients must stay in hospital, where their beds will protected with mosquito nets. They can only be discharged after they test negative or at the end of a week-long stay.

Spread through the bite of an infected mosquito, the virus causes fever and severe joint pain, which sometimes can last for years.

Although rare in China, chikungunya outbreaks are common in South and South East Asia and parts of Africa.

Aside from Foshan, at least 12 other cities in the southern Guangdong province have reported infections. Nearly 3,000 cases were reported in the last week alone.