Euro Surveillance : Bulletin Europeen Sur Les Maladies Transmissibles = European Communicable Disease Bulletin, 31(16)
During September 2025-January 2026, 111 travellers (61 female/50 male; median age: 53 years) who acquired chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in Cuba were reported to GeoSentinel. Upon return, 64.2% (70/109) were potentially viraemic. Only 8.2% (9/98) had received pre-travel consultations. The CHIKV was of East-Central-South Africa genotype, closely related to Brazilian strains. International travellers can serve as arboviral outbreak sentinels and, if viraemic, risk introducing CHIKV into areas with established Aedes spp. vectors. Their effective surveillance can trigger adequate public health responses.
EVENTS
FAQ
Journal
Euro Surveillance : Bulletin Europeen Sur Les Maladies Transmissibles = European Communicable Disease Bulletin, 31(16)
DOI
https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.16.2600286
Abstract
During September 2025-January 2026, 111 travellers (61 female/50 male; median age: 53 years) who acquired chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in Cuba were reported to GeoSentinel. Upon return, 64.2% (70/109) were potentially viraemic. Only 8.2% (9/98) had received pre-travel consultations. The CHIKV was of East-Central-South Africa genotype, closely related to Brazilian strains. International travellers can serve as arboviral outbreak sentinels and, if viraemic, risk introducing CHIKV into areas with established Aedes spp. vectors. Their effective surveillance can trigger adequate public health responses.