SEROPREVALENCE OF TRICHINELLOSIS IN PIGS IN NORTHERN STATES OF MALAYSIA

CHANDRAWATHANI P.1, PREMAALATHA B.1, ZAINI M.Z.1, ADNAN M.1, NURUL AINI R.1, ZAWIDA Z.1, JAMNAH O.1, PREMILA M.3, GAJADHAR A.3 AND RAMLAN M.1

A seroprevalence study on the status of Trichinella infection in pigs was conducted by the Veterinary Research Institute, Malaysia. Of 442 pigs tested from Penang and Perak states, 2% were found to be positive by an ELISA test for antibodies to Trichinella. Further studies are required to determine the significance of these findings and the status of Trichinella infection in pigs across Malaysia. This includes epidemiological investigations where positive pigs were found, recovery of the parasite and identification to species or genotype, and increased sampling to represent the national population and distribution of pigs.