A Japanese patient with chikungunya fever returning from Flores Island, Indonesia

Abstract

We report a case of chikungunya fever, rarely seen by Japanese physicians. A 35-year-old Japanese man admitted September 12 for a 3-day fever had traveled to Flores island, Indonesia, July 14-Sep. 10. He had bilateral wrist arthralgia, mild bilateral finger swelling, and nonitching skin eruptions on the face, trunk, and both arms. The viral chikungunya genome was identified in serum on Sep. 12. Negative serum an-tichikungunya virus IgM antibodies on Sep. 12 became positive on Sep. 14, yielding the suspected diagnosis. Given the many Japanese visiting endemic chikungunya fever areas, Japanese physicians must learn to recognize such cases among travelers returning from such areas with fever, arthralgia, and skin eruptions.