ADDIS ABABA, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia's eastern Dire Dawa city administration on Tuesday announced efforts to contain an outbreak of Chikungunya.
Over 3,750 suspected cases of Chikungunya, a viral disease transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes, have been reported in Dire Dawa, said Fuad Kedir, who heads the health bureau of the second largest Ethiopian city.
"The condition has not yet been confirmed whether all the reported cases are Chikungunya since the disease has similar symptoms of illness with malaria and dengue virus," state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate quoted Kedir as saying on Tuesday.
No death has been reported so far.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Chikungunya is rarely fatal, and symptoms are generally self-limiting and last two to three days.
Chikungunya previously affected Ethiopia's Somali, Afar, and Southern regional states.
Kedir said Dire Dawa city administration has distributed more than 179,000 insecticide-treated bed nets to prevent the spread of the disease.
Chikungunya can be detected using serological tests and recovery from Chikungunya infection will also confer lifelong immunity.
The WHO says Chikungunya has similar clinical signs with dengue cases and can be misdiagnosed in areas where dengue is common.
