While Pregnant, Chikungunya Infection Can Disrupt Infant Development

Over the past few decades, mosquito-driven outbreaks of Chikungunya disease have occurred in approximately 100 countries, and many adults have been diagnosed with severe cases.
For example, in the Region of the Americas, there were 236 Chikungunya-related fatalities in 2024.
And in 2025, the Pan American Health Organization has already reported 523 Chikungunya cases in Brazil.
Furthermore, questions remain unanswered about whether pregnant women are likely to transmit the virus to unborn infants and the virus's impact on infected children's development.
A recent study published on January 24, 2025, examined the effects of intrauterine and perinatal exposure to the Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) on neurodevelopment in infants and toddlers in Rio de Janeiro, a known hotspot for outbreaks.
In an Orginal Arucale published by The Journal of Pediatrics, researchers concluded abnormal neurodevelopmental outcomes were observed in both infected and uninfected children who had been exposed to CHIKV either during pregnancy or around the time of birth.
At 11 to 42 months, 35 exposed children and 78 unexposed controls had Bayley-III assessments. Compared with controls, exposed children had higher rates of Developmental Delay (DD) (7 [20%] vs. 2 [3%], p=0.004) driven by the language domain and greater risk of DD driven by motor and cognitive domains scores (10 [29%] vs. 10 [13%], p=0.03 and 8 [23%] vs. 5 [6%], p=0.02, respectively).
Eight of 35 (23%) CHIKV-exposed children screened positive for autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
CHIKV-exposed uninfected children had 2 (9.5%) cases of DD and 5 (23.8%) cases of ASD.
These researchers and many public health leaders believe monitoring newborn health during the first week of life in CHIKV outbreak zones is essential for the offspring of pregnant travelers who visited outbreak zones.
Additionally, expecting mothers should avoid mosquito bites and speak with a travel vaccine expert about vaccination options.
In 2023, the U.S. FDA approved a vaccine to prevent chikungunya infections, which is available at travel clinics and pharmacies in the United States.
Our Trust Standards: Medical Advisory Committee