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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Florida's fourth case of the mosquito-borne disease chikungunya fever has been recorded in Palm Beach County.
The Palm Beach Post reports (http://bit.ly/1sVk2r7 ) the Palm Beach County Health Department confirmed the infection in a 66-year-old man who had recently traveled to the Caribbean.
Cases in Miami-Dade, Broward and Hillsborough counties were previously confirmed in others who had traveled to the Caribbean.
The disease is transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes. It has been documented in 40 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Symptoms typically begin three to seven days after being bitten and include fever and severe joint pains, often in the hands and feet.
There is no vaccine or medication to prevent the disease, but it rarely kills those infected.
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