The first confirmed case of Chikungunya virus has been reported in Iowa, announced the Iowa Department of Public Health. A man from Central Iowa between the ages of 18 and 40 who recently returned from a trip to the Caribbean became ill with the mosquito-borne virus. The man is recovering and was not hospitalized. Imported cases of Chikungunya are common in the United States, meaning individuals are bitten by an infected mosquito while traveling. Symptoms of the illness include fever and joint pain, with most people feeling better in about a week but for some it may last months.

A mosquito can carry the virus from one person to another if it bites an infected individual and then bites someone else. Health officials remind people to protect against mosquito bites while at home and traveling by wearing insect repellent and removing stagnant water where mosquitoes breed.

For more information about Chikungunya click here and for a map of where transmission is occurring click here.