Professor Dr. Md. Abdul Khalique Barbhuiya
Editor-in-Chief
North East Medical Journal
Introduction: Chikungunya fever is a self-remitting mosquito born febrile viral illness characterized by chills and rigor, rash, and joint pain. This virus was first identified in 1952 in Tanzania, Africa. Later on it was found in different countries of Asia like- India, Srilanka, Thailand, Myanmar and Indonesia. But the illness has only recently become a concern in Western countries and temperate zones around the world. The recent re-emergence and travel-related spread of Chikungunya infection to Europe and the United States has drawn global attention. However a major outbreak in 2015 affected several countries of the Region of the Americas. In Bangladesh, virus was first identified in Rajsahi and Chapainowabgonj district in 2008 then in 2011 it was found in Dohar upozila of Dhaka. International travel stands out as one of the major risk factors for the rapid global spread of the disease. Currently the disease has been reported from almost 60 countries from various WHO region including South-East Asia. 1-3