Chapter 9 - Trichinellosis in animals

RIBICICH, M MABEL; PASQUALETTI, MARIANA I.; FARIÑA, FERNANDO A.

Trichinella and Trichinellosis

Academic Press

Año: 2021; p. 3 - 516

The presence of Trichinella spp. in animals raised for food is a public health risk. Domestic and wild animals, mainly carnivores, serve as infection reservoirs, contributing to maintaining the parasite, thereby posing a risk both to food animals and humans. In contrast to human trichinellosis, limited studies have been conducted regarding disease resulting from Trichinella infection on animals. In pigs, Trichinella spiralis infection results in pathological changes in skeletal muscles and other organs. However, clinical signs are rare, except in infections with high loads. Wild boars (Sus scrofa) are excellent hosts for some species in the Trichinella genus, and, as in pigs, clinical signs are rare. Other animal species show varying susceptibility to infection. The presence or absence of signs of infection can be affected by the susceptibility of the host to the Trichinella species as well as by the parasite burden.