title: The birth of a Trichinella britovi focus on the Mediterranean island of Sardinia (Italy).
abstract: For 60 years, the islands of the Mediterranean basin were considered to be Trichinella-free. In April 2005, an outbreak of human trichinellosis due to the consumption of infected pork involved 11 persons in the villages of Orgosolo and Lanusei (Nuoro province) on the island of Sardinia (Italy). We conducted an investigation to identify free-range and backyard pigs and other humans with Trichinella infection in the area of the 2005 outbreak. We also tested wild animals from various parts of Sardinia. In December 2005, eight persons were found to have been infected, and in May 2007 there was a single case of infection. The sources of all infections were domestic pigs. Artificial digestion of muscle samples from 681 pigs (325 free-range and 356 backyard pigs) revealed Trichinella sp. larvae in four sows (1.2%). All larvae, including those from the consumed pork products, were identified as Trichinella britovi. All infected pigs originated from the Orgosolo municipality. None of the 6188 wild boars (Sus scrofa) or 13 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) examined were positive for Trichinella sp., suggesting that this parasite is restricted to free-range pigs. The origin of infected animals on Sardinia remains to be determined, although it could be related to the presence of T. britovi-infected animals on the island of Corsica (France).
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious, Parasitic and Immunomediated Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, viale Regina Elena 299, Rome, Italy. edoardo.pozio@iss.it
authors.forename: Edoardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pozio
authors.forename: Pasquale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cossu
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Marucci
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Amati
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ludovisi
authors.forename: Maria Angeles Gomez
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Morales
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: La Rosa
authors.forename: Tonino
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Firinu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy / Q000453:epidemiology; D008460:Meat / Q000469:parasitology; D008521:Mediterranean Islands; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000469:parasitology; D013552:Swine; D013553:Swine Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology; D014234:Trichinella / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D014235:Trichinellosis / Q000453:epidemiology*