Modeling Protection Strategies Against Chikungunya Virus on Reunion Island

Chikungunya virus is a mosquito-borne virus that is often accompanied by chronic arthritis. The disease was relatively unstudied until an outbreak on Reunion Island in 2004 infected nearly a third of the population. This led to the creation of systems of differential equations to model transmission on this island. Here we look at preventing transmission with the use of mosquito repellent, and we construct a game-theoretic model where individuals choose how often they spray themselves with repellent. We find that as the cost of insect repellent decreases, compared to the cost of infection, the strategies of rational individuals results in a reduction of infectivity of the disease, but does not eliminate it.