The first documented outbreak of trichinellosis in Hong Kong Chinese

An outbreak of trichinellosis occurred in a Chinese family after the ingestion of inadequately cooked pork. Diagnosis was established by the demonstration of antibodies against Trichinella spiralis larval antigen by crossed immunoelectrophoresis and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, and living larvae in muscle biopsy. The main presenting symptom of these patients was pyrexia. Typical clinical features of Trichinella infection such as periorbital edema and severe myalgia were either minimal or absent. A history of having eaten insufficiently cooked meat is thus extremely important for correct diagnosis. We believe that this is the first documented report of a Trichinella outbreak in Chinese living in Hong Kong.