Co-infection of Dengue and Chikungunya viruses: A Serological study from Ananthapuramu District, Andhra Pradesh

Introduction: It is observed that the infections of Dengue and Chikungunya were rising in many parts of India. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are common vectors for dengue virus (DENV) and CHIK virus (CHIKV). In areas where both viruses co circulate, they can be transmitted together. The present study was undertaken to study the clinical features of dengue–CHIK coinfection and compare it with mono infection.

Materials and Methods: This study was conducted at Government General hospital, Ananthapuramu on 100 hospitalized suspected patients from July 2021 and November 2021. They were serologically screened for DENV, CHIKV and both by performing RTPCR for dengue and ELISA CHIK IgM for Chikungunya.

Results: Out of the total 100 samples collected from suspected patients, 28 (28%) samples were positive for DENV while 5 (5%) samples were positive for CHIKV. In addition to this, 4 sera were positive (4%) for coinfection of DENV and CHIKV. Co infected patients had fever in all cases while rash was seen in only 50% cases. Fever, Myaliga, Arthralgia and thrombocytopenia were seen in many number of co infected cases which signifies the overlapping nature of dengue–CHIK coinfection.

Conclusion: It is concluded that strict control measures should be implemented to stop the spread of these viruses as there in Increase in the number of Dengue and Chikungunya infections and their co circulation.