Meanwhile the Director of Emergency, Disaster Management and Special Services at the Health Ministry, Dr. Marion Bullock Ducasse, says the Ministry is aware that several persons have indicated that they believe they have contracted Chik-V.
In a statement last evening, Dr. Bullock Ducasse says there are diseases with symptoms similar to Chik-V which continue to spread throughout the island, such as dengue and influenza.
She says dengue has symptoms which persons can mistake for Chik-V as it’s also characterized by headache, fever, joint and muscle pains.
The Health Ministry says up to August 23, there’ve been 160 suspected cases of dengue fever, of which 13 were confirmed by laboratory tests.
Dr. Bullock DuCasse says the Ministry has recorded 85 suspected cases of Chik-V and has so far got 24 confirmations from the Caribbean Public Health Agency, CARPHA.
The parishes for which confirmations have been received remain St. Thomas, St. Catherine, St. Ann and Kingston and St. Andrew.
She says fifteen samples are awaiting testing and the other cases are under investigation.
Dr. Bullock DuCasse says between June and August this year, the virology lab at the University of the West Indies received 184 suspected Chik-V samples.
Of that number, 164 have been tested, with only one positive result so far.
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