Bulgaria: Trichinellosis outbreak in Panagyurishte municipality sickens dozens, Linked to wild boar meat
A parasitologist at the Regional Health Inspection in Pazardzhik reported to local media that meat from a wild boar infected residents of Levski village, Panagyurishte municipality in southern Bulgaria during the December holidays, with trichinosis.
As of the beginning of the New Year, 37 cases of trichinosis, or trichinellosis, were registered in the village.
All the patients affected were treated for the parasitic infection and are under home observation. Prophylaxis treatment was given to all others that consumed the meat.
The health inspectorate in Pazardzhik warns that during the hunting period the probability of contracting trichinellosis - a serious parasitic disease that affects humans, domestic and wild pigs, as well as cats, dogs, foxes, wolves, jackals, rats, mice, etc. - increases.
The risk of the disease is greatest in autumn and winter, when domestic pigs are slaughtered, boars are hunted and homemade sausages are prepared. Then the largest number of infected people are registered.
A person becomes ill with trichinellosis when using improperly thermally processed meat, minced meat and raw meat products (pastrami, fillet, sausage, sujuk, babek, etc.) from an infected animal, with which he ingests trichinella larvae. Whole families and groups of people who have consumed the contaminated products often get sick, health inspectors say.