Hawaii’s battle with brain-invading parasite shows California what may be coming

Parasite that has long caused lungworm disease in mice Hawaiiit was detected in california The incident, seen at the San Diego Zoo, has raised concerns that the debilitating disease could become more widespread.

Hawaii Rat lungworm disease hotspot in the USwith more than 80 cases These were laboratory-verified from 2016 to 2026. Yet it is considered a highly underdiagnosed disease. The largest number of mouse lungworm cases occur on the island of Hawaii.

After people contract the disease finding slugs in washed salad, eating unwashed fruit or vegetables and even food bravely slug. Awareness of the disease has changed the way some Hawaii residents purchase produce, where they choose to purchase salads or smoothies, and how they prepare fruits and vegetables at home before eating them.

Although no human cases have emerged California so farHawaii’s experience with the disease is a preview of what California residents and doctors need to know about the disease and how to avoid it.

‘It’s probably everywhere’

Hawaiian researcher Susan JarviHe told SFGATE, who studied mouse lungworm in the Aloha State for more than a decade and retired last year, that he wasn’t surprised it was found in Southern California. He said the parasite is probably more common than people know because it isn’t routinely tested.

“It’s probably more widespread across the country, especially in the southern parts. It’s probably everywhere. We know it’s in Louisiana, Texas, Georgia and Florida, so it’s probably spread again,” Jarvi told SFGATE.

The disease is caused by the parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis and is commonly called. rat lungworm Because the parasite starts its life in a mouse. The larvae are then transferred to snails and slugs through a rat’s feces. If microscopic larvae are accidentally ingested, they can be transmitted to humans, most often through contaminated products.

In humans, the disease can be severe. Once the roundworm parasite enters the body, it passes through the intestines into the bloodstream and travels to its final destination in the brain; Here it lives on spinal fluid until it reaches adulthood, about 11 millimeters long.

A former Hilo physician, Dr. “They can’t get out of the brain, so they travel around inside your brain and try to get out, and then they die in your brain,” Jon Martell told SFGATE. last year’s story.

Rat lungworm symptoms may begin with cough, nausea, and fever but can progress to severe headaches, nerve pain, and neurological complications. Prompt treatment with the antiparasitic drug albendazole can help people recover. In some cases, people recover quickly, while others may experience serious, life-changing illness or death.

The introduction of invasive half-slugs in Hawaii in the 1990s caused symptoms to trend more severe, Martell said, because half-slugs can carry 10,000 to 15,000 parasites, while other half-slugs carry hundreds of parasites.

California There is currently no semi-slug populationhowever, if it does spread, the pest is likely to spread, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s assessment. It is unclear how the slugs currently found in California interact with the parasite and how many larvae they may carry.

Washing alone does not eliminate the risk

Because the parasite is often spread to humans through contaminated products, Jarvi said washing is helpful but does not completely eliminate the risk.

“You can’t wash this slime, and you know, the slime of slugs and snails is very, very sticky and sticky, and you can’t really wash it, and it has live parasites in it that can be infectious,” he said.

The first tip is to inspect the product and see if there is anything abnormal. “Sometimes you can tell if something’s been chewed on lettuce or tomatoes or whatever. And I would advise you not to bother with that. Throw it away. Don’t eat it because you don’t know what’s chewing it,” he said.

Products should be washed under running water, not soaked, and then allowed to dry completely. Jarvi said he would place his tomatoes on the window sill so the sun would hit them and turn them upside down to dry completely before eating. The same thing needs to be done with lettuce, which is washed leaf by leaf. Jarvi said he’ll even re-wash previously washed lettuce.

Cooking and freezing are the best ways to kill the parasite. “I cook as much as possible,” Jarvi said, adding that even soilless lettuce carries the risk of contamination from slugs and snails. “I have to say there are fewer of them than they grow in the ground… but they do climb.”

defend yourself

In Hawaii, the disease also revealed gaps in awareness among clinicians unfamiliar with the infection. This may delay diagnosis and treatment as the parasite reaches the brain and the disease may become more severe.

In the past, Citizens had to convince doctors to perform the spinal tap required to diagnose the infection. In at least one case, a slug was taken to Jarvi, which confirmed the infection, and Jarvi relayed those results to the emergency room to persuade the doctor to prescribe albendazole. The situation has improved, but much still depends on how familiar the doctor is with the disease.

“Education is very important. You know, education of the general public is very important and education of clinicians is also very important. If you don’t know anything about it, you won’t even know if you’re looking at it,” he said. “So education was, and still is, No. 1 in my mind.”

SFGATE reached out to the California Department of Public Health for comment but did not receive a response before publication time.

More Hawaii News

– Risks increase as visitors to Hawaii decrease
– Father still hopeful 33 years after his son disappeared in Hawaii
– ‘Terrible’: Hawaii natives fight lawsuit against proposed new hotel
– America’s largest coffee producer is in danger of closing

We have a Hawaii newsletter with news, tips and in-depth features from the Aloha state. become a member Here.

This article was first published at: Hawaii’s battle with brain-invading parasite shows what could happen to California.