The debilitating outbreak sweeping the Americas

Meera Senthilingam, for CNN

Updated 1510 GMT (2310 HKT) January 5, 2015

It's a disease with an exotic name, painful symptoms and no treatment or vaccine. It's endemic in Asia and Africa, and it recently spread to the Americas -- where nearly 1 million people have been infected and 150 have died. Here, a doctor examines a patient in El Salvador for signs of Chikungunya.
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Global rise in Chikungunya infections – It's a disease with an exotic name, painful symptoms and no treatment or vaccine. It's endemic in Asia and Africa, and it recently spread to the Americas -- where nearly 1 million people have been infected and 150 have died. Here, a doctor examines a patient in El Salvador for signs of Chikungunya.
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The Chikungunya virus is spread through the bite of the Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquito species, which are local to the Americas.
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Global rise in Chikungunya infections – The Chikungunya virus is spread through the bite of the Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquito species, which are local to the Americas.
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Blood tests are the only means of confirming infection with Chikungunya.
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Global rise in Chikungunya infections – Blood tests are the only means of confirming infection with Chikungunya.
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People living in affected regions are advised to sleep under bed nets to avoid being bitten by infected mosqutoes.
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Global rise in Chikungunya infections – People living in affected regions are advised to sleep under bed nets to avoid being bitten by infected mosqutoes.
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Workers from Haiti's Ministry of Public Health and Population spray chemicals to exterminate mosquitoes. Mosquito control is the main strategy used to prevent further spread of disease.