Thousands contract chikungunya in Lampung

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post 31 Dec 09;

Over 12,000 people in Lampung have reportedly contracted the mosquito-borne chikungunya disease since mid December, the highest recorded number in the last ten years, says the provincial Health Agency.

Although the disease is not deadly, many victims have been forced to stay in bed for a week due to joint pains they said made them feel like they were paralyzed.

“I had to drop my New Year celebration plans thanks to the illness,” Rohadi, 46, of West Tanjungkarang, Bandarlampung, said on Wednesday.

He said that he and his children had gone to a local community health center (Puskesmas) to seek medical treatment, but were still yet to recover from the disease.

Most of the chikungunya sufferers in the province are being treated at home or at the nearest Puskesmas.

So far, Tulangbawang and Mesuji have been reported as the worst-hit regencies in the province, where the disease has affected between 3,000 and 4,000 people in both regions consecutively.

Mesuji is a former transmigration area and the majority of its population comes from Java and Bali, where numerous swamps are left abandoned.

“None of the sufferers in Mesuji are receiving medical treatment at hospital.

“Most of them don’t consider the disease deadly although it tortures them with pain and decreases their ability to work,” said the head of the regency health agency, Anindito.

He added that most of the sufferers had complained of joint and bone pains. Yet, he assured the disease would not paralyze them.

“They will recover by themselves in five to seven days,” Anindito said.

Meanwhile in West Lampung, the regency health agency reported that 930 people were suffering from chikungunya, most of whom lived near or inside the forest.

They are spread across 10 subdistricts in the Bengkunat-Belimbing district, with Penyandingan the worst-hit subdistrict.

The chikungunya virus is contracted through the bite of the aedes aegypti mosquito.

Once infected, victims develop a high fever, reddish spots, joint pains, vomiting, flu symptoms and headaches.

Some call the disease the bone flu in reference to its specific symptoms.

Head of the Lampung Health Agency Reliyani said her office was inventing the number of sufferers across the province and would use the data to help rid the province of the disease.

“Fogging is not the best answer to dealing with the disease.

“A healthy lifestyle and 3M plus practises are a better alternative,” said Reliyani, referring to the abbreviated term of periodically cleaning water containers as a preventive measure.