RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Chronic Joint Pain 3 Years after Chikungunya Virus Infection Largely Characterized by Relapsing-remitting Symptoms
JF The Journal of Rheumatology
JO J Rheumatol
FD The Journal of Rheumatology
SP jrheum.190162
DO 10.3899/jrheum.190162
A1 Sarah R.  Tritsch
A1 Liliana Encinales
A1 Nelly Pacheco
A1 Andres Cadena
A1 Carlos Cure
A1 Elizabeth McMahon
A1 Hugh Watson
A1 Alexandra  Porras Ramirez
A1 Alejandro Rico  Mendoza
A1 Guangzhao Li
A1 Kunal Khurana
A1 Juan Jose  Jaller-Raad
A1 Stella  Mejia Castillo
A1 Onaldo  Barrios Taborda
A1 Juan Jose  Jaller-Char
A1 Lil  Avendaño  Echavez
A1 Dennys Jiménez
A1 Andres  Gonzalez Coba
A1 Magda  Alarcon Gomez
A1 Dores  Ariza Orozco
A1 Eyda Bravo
A1 Victor Martinez
A1 Brenda Guerra
A1 Gary Simon
A1 Gary S.  Firestein
A1 Aileen Y.  Chang
YR 2019
UL http://www.jrheum.org/content/early/2019/11/08/jrheum.190162.abstract
AB Objective To determine the frequency of chronic joint pain and stiffness 3 years after infection with chikungunya virus (CHIKV) in a Latin American cohort. Methods A cross-sectional followup of 120 patients from an initial cohort of 500 patients who reported joint pain 2 years after infection from the Atlántico Department, Colombia. Patients were clinically diagnosed as having CHIKV during the 2014–2015 epidemic, and baseline and followup symptoms at 40 months were evaluated in serologically confirmed cases. Results Of the initial 500 patients enrolled in the study, 482 had serologically confirmed chikungunya infection. From this group, 123 patients reported joint pain 20 months after infection, and 54% of those patients reported continued joint pain 40 months after infection. Therefore, 1 out of every 8 people who tested serologically positive for CHIKV infection had persistent joint pain 3 years after infection. Participants who followed up in person were predominantly adult (mean ± SD age 51 ± 14 yrs) and female (86%). The most common type of pain reported in these patients at 40 months post-infection was pain with periods of relief and subsequent reoccurrence, and over 75% reported stiffness after immobility, with 39% experiencing morning stiffness. Conclusion To our knowledge, this is the first report to describe persistent joint pain and stiffness 40 months after viral infection. The high frequency of chronic disease highlights the need to develop prevention and treatment methods. Further studies should be conducted to understand the similarities between post-chikungunya joint pain and rheumatoid arthritis.