THE EPIDEMIOLOGY OF DENGUE FEVER AND CHIKUNGUNYA VIRUSES IN GHANA, AMED

Abstract

Dengue virus (DENV) and Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) which cause Dengue fever and Chikungunya respectively are single-stranded, positive-sense ribonucleic acid (RNA) viruses. DENV belongs to the family Flaviviridae and genus Flavivirus of which there are 4 known serotypes (DENV1–4) and CHIKV belongs to the family Togaviridae and genus Alphavirus of which there are 3 known strains (Asian-West African; East-Central; South African. Both DENV and CHIKV are part of arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses). The viruses are known to co-circulate with overlapping clinical symptoms, in endemic areas. The illnesses caused by both DENV and CHIKV, especially in the initial stages of infection are characterized by the sudden onset of fever, malaise, headache, sore throat, abdominal pain, vomiting and bloody diarrhea, and skin rash. However, accurate diagnosis for these two viruses is imperative since the outcomes and management strategies are different. In Ghana, DENV and CHIKV do not give rise to large epidemics contrary to what pertains in some parts of Africa, Asia, America, or Pacific regions but is poorly documented. Ghana is considered endemic for an arboviral infection, yellow fever according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The Yellow fever virus is spread by the Aedes species of mosquitoes which is commonplace and incidentally spreads DENV and CHIKV in these countries. The aim of the project is to identify and characterize Dengue Fever and Chikungunya viruses and other endemic arboviruses in selected health facilities in Ghana. The selected healthcare facilities are Manso Nkwanta and Bomfa Health Centers in Ashanti region as well as the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Ridge, Accra.