March 17, 2011

EU to have a standardised surveillance for Trichinella 

The EU is formulating a cost-effective surveillance programme that allows a standardised monitoring approach for Trichinella infections in pigs, with assistance from European research institutes.

More than 167 million pigs in the EU are tested for Trichinella under the current meat hygiene regulations every year. This imposes large economic costs on countries although the majority of these pigs test negative. Thus, the public health risk in many countries is considered very low.

This work, which is published in the journal Preventive Veterinary Medicine, reviewed the current Trichinella status across the EU as well as the national level of monitoring and reporting. It also reviewed which animal species were affected by Trichinella and in which species it should be surveyed.

This information was used to formulate a cost-effective surveillance programme that allows a standardised monitoring approach within the EU. The researchers said that a simple and transparent method is needed and the probability of detecting a positive case, if present, must be high (more than 95% or 99%). This requires sensitive and accurate detection methods.

The proposed surveillance programme specifies the required number of samples to be taken and found negative, in a MS. A MS with no data or positive findings will initially be allocated to class 1, in which all pigs should be tested. When a MS is able to demonstrate a 95% or 99% confidence that Trichinella is absent, the MS will be allocated to class 2 or 3, in which the testing requirement is lower than in class 1.