Brazil records 254,000 chikungunya cases and 161 deaths in 2024
With 254,095 probable cases in Brazil in 2024, along with 161 confirmed deaths and 155 still under investigation, chikungunya is increasingly gaining national significance. This assessment was provided by Rivaldo Venâncio, the Assistant Secretary for Health Surveillance at the Ministry of Health, in his comments on the current state of arboviruses in the country.
"Fortunately, we've observed a decline in the number of cases for nearly ten consecutive weeks, similar to what we've seen with dengue," he stated during a meeting in Brasília. The current chikungunya incidence rate in Brazil stands at 125.1 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Most infections occurred among women, who made up 60 percent of the cases. In terms of race, 66.7 percent of cases were among brown people, followed by whites at 24.4 percent, blacks at 7 percent, Asians at 1.5 percent, and indigenous people at 0.2 percent. The age groups most affected by the disease were those aged 20 to 29, followed by 40 to 49, 30 to 39, and 50 to 59, respectively.
Data from the Ministry of Health reveal that the state of Minas Gerais concentrates the majority of chinkungunya cases (159,844). This is followed by Mato Grosso (19,018) and Bahia (15,508).
The chikungunya virus is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also serves as a vector for dengue, Zika, and yellow fever.
