At Least 150 Sick in Gabon From Painful Fever

Health officials in the African nation of Gabon say at least 150 people have been sickened by a mosquito-borne illness.

Gabon's Health Minister Marie Josee Ndombi announced Wednesday night in a statement on national television that the patients had been hospitalized with suspected cases of chikungunya fever.

The illness can cause fevers, joint pain, headaches and rashes.

Chikungunya was first identified in Tanzania in the early 1950s and has caused periodic outbreaks in Asia and Africa since the 1960s.

Although rarely fatal, it can lead to joint pain so intense it is often too painful for victims to sit or stand.

An outbreak in 2007 infected more than 21,000 people in Gabon.