Prospective Study of Chikungunya Virus Acute Infection in the Island of La Réunion during the 2005–2006 Outbreak

, an anthropophilic mosquito species widely distributed in Asia, Europe, Africa and America. Our objective was to determine the clinical and biological features of patients at the acute phase of CHIKV infection. was very closely associated with viremic patients (Yule coefficient 0.82, positive predictive value 92.3%). Age under 65 was associated with a benign course, as no patients younger than 65 had to be hospitalized (Yule coefficient 0.78).The diagnosis of CHIKV infection in acute phase is based on commonly accepted clinical criteria (fever and arthralgia), however clinical and biological diffrences exist in acute phase depending on whether or not the patient is within the viremic phase of the infection