"SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- An excruciating mosquito-borne illness that arrived less than a year ago in the Americas is raging across the region, leaping from the Caribbean to the Central and South American mainland, and infecting more than 1 million people. Some cases have already emerged in the United States.

While the disease, called chikungunya, is usually not fatal, the epidemic has overwhelmed hospitals, cut economic productivity and caused its sufferers days of pain and misery. And the count of victims is soaring.

In El Salvador, health officials report nearly 30,000 suspected cases, up from 2,300 at the beginning of August, and hospitals are filled with people with the telltale signs of the illness, including joint pain so severe it can be hard to walk."

Ezequiel Abiu and Lopez Ben Fox report for the Associated Press September 27, 2014. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"El Salvador Says Nearly 30,000 Infected With Mosquito-Borne Chikungunya" (New York Daily News) [3]

"Baugh: Chikungunya Now a Full Blown Epidemic" (Jamaica Observer) [4]

"Chikungunya Disease Slowly Sneaking into U.S. as World Focuses on Ebola" (Headlines & Globasl News) [5]

"Venezuela Fighting High Numbers of Dengue, Chikugunya And Malaria" (VOXXI) [6]

"6 Ways Climate Change is Making Us Sick" (TIME) [7]