A common source for a trichinellosis outbreak reported in France and Serbia in 2017

Régine Barruet (1) , Alice Devez (1) , Jean Dupouy-Camet (2) , Gregory Karadjian (3) , Dragana Plavsa (4) , Georges Chydériotis (5) , Isabelle Vallée (3) , Ljiljana Sofronic-Milosavljevic (6) , Hélène Yera (2)

1 CHI André Gregoire - Centre Hospitalier Intercommunal André Grégoire [Montreuil]
2 Hôpital Cochin [AP-HP]
3 BIPAR - Biologie moléculaire et immunologie parasitaires et fongiques
4 BATUT - Institute of Public Health of Serbia
5 Eurofins Biomnis
6 INEP - Institute for the Application of Nuclear Energy [Belgrade, Serbia]

Trichinellosis is a rare parasitic zoonosis in the European Union. Meat from backyard pigs was the common source for a trichinellosis outbreak caused by Trichinella spiralis , which occurred in France and Serbia in the beginning of 2017. An epidemiological study was conducted in France and Serbia to determine the extent of the outbreak, to identify its source and to implement control measures. Three cases were exposed in Serbia and brought back to France pork delicatessen which they shared with relatives and friends. Around 47 individuals were exposed to the parasitised meat in France and Serbia and 20 cases of trichinellosis were reported (nine in France and 11 in Serbia). Nine of them were female. The diagnosis was delayed, in part because the parasitosis was not known by most physicians, which led to complications in the French cases such as facial paralysis and pulmonary embolism. Health alerts and survey networks are indispensable at a European level to control the disease.

Domaines: Médecine vétérinaire et santé animale

Régine Barruet, Alice Devez, Jean Dupouy-Camet, Gregory Karadjian, Dragana Plavsa, et al.. A common source for a trichinellosis outbreak reported in France and Serbia in 2017. Eurosurveillance, 2020, 25 (24), ⟨10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.24.1900527⟩. ⟨anses-03750523⟩