Estimating the transmissibility of the 2025 chikungunya fever outbreak in Foshan, China: a modelling study

Abstract Background Following the onset of an index chikungunya case on July 8, 2025, a significant outbreak occurred in Foshan, Guangdong Province, China. This study aimed to quantify the outbreak's transmissibility between June 16 and July 21, 2025. Methods Data were obtained from local Government, Statistics Bureau, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the relevant literature. We employed a transmission dynamic model that integrated human host-vector transmission to estimate the basic reproduction number ( $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 ). The key parameters of the model were calibrated using early-phase limited surveillance data on the cumulative number of cases. We calculated the correlation coefficient to evaluate the accuracy of this calibration. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to quantify the uncertainties in the parameter inputs. Results Between June 16 and July 31, 2025, cumulative cases reached 2658, with 92.96% concentrated in the Shunde District. Model simulations showed that a cumulative case count is consistent with local reports ( Pearson r = 0.99 , P < 0.001). The median overall $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 of this outbreak was 7.2807 [interquntile range (IQR): 7.2809‒7.2811], suggesting sustained transmission. Human-to-mosquito transmission (Median: 22.79, IQR: 5.44‒40.14) had a higher median $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 than mosquito-to-human transmission (Median: 2.33, IQR:0.58‒4.07) (Mann–Whitney U P < 0.001). Symptomatic infections (Median: 19.60, IQR: 4.68‒34.52) had a higher median $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 than asymptomatic infections (Median: 3.19, IQR: 0.76‒5.62) (Mann–Whitney U P < 0.001). The model simulated cumulative cases were sensitive to parameters $$a$$ a , $$b$$ b , $${\omega }_{m}$$ ω m , and $${\omega }_{p}$$ ω p . The overall $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 and mosquito-to-human $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 were sensitive to parameters $$a$$ a and $$b$$ b . The human-to-mosquito and symptomatic human-to-mosquito $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 were sensitive to parameter $$\gamma$$ γ , while asymptomatic human-to-mosquito $${R}_{0}$$ R 0 was sensitive to parameter $${{\omega }_{p}}{\prime}.$$ ω p ′ . Conclusions The transmissibility of CHIKV is high. Human-to-mosquito transmission, especially symptomatic infections to mosquito transmission, was the main driver of chikungunya virus transmission. These findings underscore the critical need for enhanced screening of travellers from endemic regions, timely case isolation, and targeted vector control to mitigate autochthonous transmission. Graphical abstract