What chikungunya is
Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne virus, which spreads through bites from infected mosquitoes.
Most people recover quickly from chikungunya, but it can cause severe, long-term health problems especially for people in high-risk groups.
Why it matters to public health
Chikungunya is not endemic to Australia, but it is a major global health concern with millions of infections diagnosed every year around the world.
Outbreaks in Africa, Asia, the Americas, the Western Pacific and Europe have led to a rise in chikungunya infections worldwide in 2025.
There is no specific treatment for chikungunya. Infection can result in serious, long-term complications.
In rare cases, chikungunya can cause severe disease in newborn babies if a pregnant person gets infected.
Chikungunya has not been detected in mosquitoes in Australia. But the mosquito species that transmit the virus are present in northern Queensland and the Torres Strait.
This means that outbreaks could occur in Australia.
Because of these major impacts, we:
- work with colleagues in the animal and environmental sectors at the national and state and territory levels to ensure a One Health coordinated approach to monitoring and reporting of chikungunya
- plan for how to manage major outbreaks.
Symptoms
Common symptoms include:
- fever
- severe joint pain
- joint swelling and stiffness
- rash
- fatigue
- muscle pain
- headache
- nausea and vomiting.
Most people with chikungunya virus recover from serious illness within 1 to 2 weeks and develop lifelong immunity. In some people, joint pain can persist for months or years.
Severe illness is more likely for some groups of people and can include:
- seizures and nerve damage
- inflammation of the heart
- hepatitis
- kidney failure
- eye problems
- respiratory failure.
Read more about symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of chikungunya virus.
healthdirect’s symptom checker can help you decide whether to see a health professional.
Onset of symptoms
Symptoms usually start between 3 and 7 days after a bite from an infected mosquito, but can range from 1 to 12 days.
How it spreads
Mosquitoes become infected with chikungunya virus when they bite someone with the virus in their blood. They then pass on the virus when they bite another person.
The mosquito species that transmit chikungunya can bite during the day, but are most active in the few hours after sunrise and before sunset.
Chikungunya does not transmit directly from person to person.
In rare cases, chikungunya can spread:
- from a pregnant or breastfeeding person to their fetus or baby
- through infected blood, such as
- during blood transfusions
- when drawing blood
- when handling blood in laboratories.
Infectious period
People with chikungunya can spread the virus to mosquitoes for up to 7 days after their symptoms start.
Prevention
There is no vaccine for chikungunya available in Australia.
The best way to protect against chikungunya is to prevent mosquito bites.
If you become unwell with a high fever during or soon after travelling to a place where chikungunya is found, speak to your healthcare professional as soon as possible.
If you have chikungunya, it is important to prevent mosquito bites while you have a fever. This is because you could pass the virus to mosquitoes, which can then spread the virus to other people.
High-risk groups and settings
Some people are at greater risk of getting chikungunya or of getting very sick from it.
If you are at greater risk, it is especially important to:
- take steps to protect yourself
- travel safely.
People at greater risk of severe disease
Chikungunya poses a greater risk of severe illness for:
- people aged 65 years or older
- people with existing health conditions like hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular disease
- newborn babies.
People at greater risk of exposure
You are at greater risk of being exposed to chikungunya if you travel to places where chikungunya occurs.
Diagnosis and treatment
If your health professional suspects you may have chikungunya, they will usually refer you for a blood test.
You can use healthdirect’s directory to find a health service near you.
There is no specific treatment for chikungunya. You can take pain-relief medicines to help with joint pain.
If you have symptoms of chikungunya, do not take anti-inflammatory medicines – like aspirin or ibuprofen – until your health professional has ruled out dengue fever, as they increase the risk of bleeding.
Read more about how to manage or treat chikungunya.
Surveillance and reporting
Chikungunya is a nationally notifiable disease – these are diseases that present a risk to public health.
Health authorities in each state and territory report new cases to us daily through the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System.
This is part of our surveillance activities, which help us monitor case numbers around the country and understand disease patterns.
We analyse the data and report on case numbers and other data through our data visualisation tool, where you can filter and search the latest information.
Outbreaks
Any chikungunya infection acquired in Australia is considered an outbreak.
How public health agencies respond to chikungunya cases and outbreaks depends on:
- laws in each state or territory
- local rules about reporting cases
- the species of mosquitoes in the area
- what resources are available.
During outbreaks, steps to control the disease may include:
- mosquito and larval control activities
- teaching people about the disease
- raising awareness on how to prevent mosquito bites.
Read more about how we define and plan for outbreaks and pandemics.
Support
For information about chikungunya in your state or territory see:
- Australian Capital Territory
- New South Wales
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Victoria
- Western Australia.
For travel advice, see Smartraveller.
We regularly add new content to this website. This will include more topics and diseases. In the meantime, information about other diseases in Australia is on the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing’s website.