Chikungunya in French Guiana (South America) Research Proposal

Chikungunya in French Guiana (South America) - Research Proposal Example Being formed by people with different origins, there has been tension between its inhabitants especially ethnically based violence, a factor that has since fuelled political instability in the country. Notably, until 1990s, the country had more than its 80% industries owned by the state and due to their mismanagement, they experienced falling commodity prices coupled with high fuel costs. These factors led the country into serious economic problems. According to the world population prospects of 2010, French Guiana’s population as per the same year was at 754,000 (Frank, 2013). This figure shows that the population increased from the 1950’s census when it was at 407,000. In the 2010 population statistics, person under the age of 15 were 33.6%, persons between 15 and 65 year of age were at 62.1%, while persons of the age of 65 and older were at 4.3% (Frank, 2013). Therefore, since there is no current census than the 2010, it is apparent that there are very few older person in French Guiana compared to other ages (Frank, 2013). This fact may be attributed to vulnerability of alder people to diseases. Therefore, the main aim of this essay is to examine the effects of Chikungunya among elderly persons in French Guiana.   Factually, the Chikungunya affects everyone but adults are highly vulnerable; therefore, the essay sort to determine if it could contribute the low percentage of elderly person above the age of 65 y ears in French Guiana and if by what percentage has it contributed to this low percentage of 4.3%. The statistics that will help in this study will be retrieved from government and non-governmental health records. Virus transmitted through mosquitoes infected by Aedesaegypti causes Chikungunya. Chikungunya was first detected in 1952 in Tanzania from which it spread in other countries in Africa and Asia with current detections in Europe. Chikungunya has currently affected millions of