Pogosta disease

Pogosta disease is a viral disease.^[1][2] The symptoms of the disease usually include rash, as well as mild fever and other flu-like symptoms; in most cases the symptoms last less than 5 days. However, in some cases, the patients develop a painful arthritis. There are no known chemical agents available to treat the disease.^[3]

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It has long been suspected that the disease is caused by a Sindbis-like virus, a positive-stranded RNA virus belonging to the Alphavirus genus and family Togaviridae.^[1] In 2002 a strain of Sindbis was isolated from patients during an outbreak of the Pogosta disease in Finland, confirming the hypothesis.^[3]

There is currently no treatment available.

This disease is mainly found in the Eastern parts of Finland; the disease was first detected in 1974 in the old parish village of Ilomantsi, sometimes called Pogosta.^[4] A typical Pogosta disease patient is a middle-aged person who has been infected through a mosquito bite while picking berries in the autumn. The prevalence of the disease is about 100 diagnosed cases every year, with larger outbreaks occurring in 7-year intervals.^[3]

It is also known as Karelian fever and Ockelbo disease. The names are derived from the words Pogosta, Karelia and Ockelbo.^{[citation needed]}