How to check boar meat for contamination. A dead boar is more dangerous than a living one! Laboratory testing of meat

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Of course, every hunter who has caught a boar while hunting is proud of it and is happy to cook at home from wild boar meat. However, failure to follow certain rules can lead to trichinosis. Trichinella larvae can be found in the meat of pigs, wild boars, bears, badgers and other carnivores. Therefore, on the eve of the opening of the spring bear hunt and taking into account the fact that in some regions the shooting of wild boar continues in connection with ASF, we remind you of precautions!

What is trichinosis?

The first symptoms of trichinosis:

• muscle pain,
• swelling,
• fever,
• muscle weakness.

Trichinella larvae in the muscle tissue of an animal are particularly resistant, and neither boiling, frying, smoking, nor salting completely frees meat products from them.

According to statistics, periodically occurring group diseases of this invasion were mainly associated with the consumption of wild boar meat in the form of kebabs, home-made dry-cured sausage, ham, fried meat and cutlets, and sandwiches made from raw minced pork. In all these cases, no veterinary examination of the carcasses was carried out.

For hunting enthusiasts, we should remind you that post-mortem veterinary examination of wild boars is mandatory for your health and the health of your loved ones! Veterinary examination of domestic pigs and wild boars is carried out by specialists from the veterinary service of meat processing plants, meat processing plants, markets, city and regional veterinary institutions.

Four residents of a Kamchatka village became infected with trichinosis after eating bear meat

In March of this year, cases of trichinosis infection have already been registered. And this happens every year. It is especially tragic when not only careless adults become infected, but also, despite warnings, they give untested wild animal meat to children.

The fight against trichinosis is carried out comprehensively: by medical, veterinary and game management organizations with mandatory mutual information between them.

The larvae settle in the muscle fiber of an infected person and partially destroy it. After about a month, a dense fibrous capsule forms around each larva (and their number can reach 15,000 per 1 kg of muscle), which thickens over time due to calcium salts. In this state, the larvae can remain alive for many years.

Within a day or two after the invasion, a person exhibits the following symptoms:

• diarrhea;
• heartburn;
• nausea;
• dyspepsia (difficulty digestion).

• muscle/joint pain;
• swelling;
• chills;
• migraines;
• cough.

In the most unfavorable development of the disease, Trichinella penetrates the brain, which causes paralysis or ataxia of the respiratory tract and subsequent death. Also, death is possible due to developing encephalitis, allergic myocarditis and pneumonia. Death can occur in just 4-6 weeks after infection - faster than with any other helminthiasis, so it is extremely important to immediately take a blood test for trichinosis if similar symptoms appear after eating meat.

If the hunter or farmer has the opportunity, it is advisable to send animal meat for a professional laboratory test for trichinosis. There are several reasons for this:

• veterinary experts have extensive experience in detecting representatives of all types of Trichinella, including non-encapsulated T. pseudospiralis, T. papuae and T. zimbabwensis, which can easily be missed by an amateur;
• laboratories use expensive microscopes, much more accurate than portable trichinelloscopes;
• The tests themselves are also more detailed - sections are taken not only on the diaphragm, but also on the intercostal, calf, masticatory and tongue muscles, and pieces of meat are dissolved in artificial gastric juice.

Similar laboratories are equipped in any major city. For example, in Moscow you can submit meat for analysis at the State Veterinary Clinic at the address: st. Yunatov, 16A.

Many people think that the warning from experts that a dead wild boar or beaver can be more dangerous than a living one seems, at least, funny. Meanwhile, this is true: during a fight, a living animal can injure only one, or at most several people, but a dead one can infect a large number of those who taste dishes prepared from its meat with trichinosis. What kind of disease is this and what are the risks of contracting it?

Features of the disease

Trichinosis is an acute helminthiasis that affects mammals. It is also dangerous for humans. Differs in severe clinical manifestations. It is not uncommon for a person to become unable to work after suffering from an illness. But the worst thing is that infection with trichinosis can cost a person his life.

The cause of this disease is Trichinella. These are very small worms, almost thread-like, photos of which can be seen on the Internet if desired. Adults can be from one and a half to 1.8 millimeters in length, with a width of only about 0.05 mm.

Soon after the larvae enter the human body and the bloodstream spreads them throughout the body, a person may experience:

1. Muscle pain.
2. High eosinophilia.
3. Fever.
4. Skin rashes.
5. Swelling of the face.

1. Lungs.
2. Myocardium.

Today, trichinosis is treatable, but just 100 years ago, entire families died from it. After all, the meat of an infected animal, for example a wild boar, does not differ from the carcasses of healthy animals either in appearance, smell, or color. But just one gram of it can contain up to 200 larvae.

Analysis

Impressive, isn't it? But it’s very easy to avoid all the troubles that trichinosis can cause: you need to check the animal’s meat for the presence of helminths. Moreover, it is necessary to check the material from both wild animals and domestic ones: data on contamination indicate that trichinosis larvae were found both in samples of badgers, beavers, bears, wild boars, wild birds, as well as horses, domestic pigs, and chickens submitted for analysis.

But in order to conduct a study, it is necessary to provide the taken material to a laboratory (this can be a sanitary and epidemiological station or a veterinary laboratory, which is available in every market). Moreover, the entire carcass must be provided for inspection, since sampling for inspection is carried out in different parts of it. These are the parts where blood circulation is best developed. These include:

1. Chewing muscles.
2. Language.
3. Diaphragm.
4. Intercostal muscles.

Why are these particular places on the animal carcass so important for research? Because if an animal is infected, these are the areas where most of the larvae are located, where they are carried into the bloodstream.

For examination, pieces weighing about 60 grams are cut off. Next, sections are separated from each sample. their size does not exceed the size of an oat grain. For example, meat for testing from a wild animal is divided into 72 sections. The material in domestic animals is divided into 24 sections. Then the selected slice is placed on the glass of the compressorium. The top is covered with another glass. After this, the material is crushed using special screws. Now all that remains is to examine the sample under a trichinelloscope or a special microscope.

But such a procedure is not only very complicated, but also not always possible - it is often a long way to get to the laboratory. In addition, you will need to explain where the meat was taken, whether there are documents for shooting the animal, if it is game, in general - nothing but problems. Therefore, most people eat barbecue at their own risk, stew meat on a fire right in the forest after a hunt, or at home, hoping that it will carry through. What you will have to pay for such frivolity is described above.

Home analysis

But what should those who cannot deliver the carcass of an animal killed during a hunt for laboratory testing do? And the point is not at all that I didn’t want to carry it - there are times when it is impossible to do this. For example, hunters spend months on the land while harvesting fur-bearing animals and are sometimes separated from civilization by several hundred kilometers. They consume meat from hunted animals without inspection.

There is a solution for such cases: you can purchase a special device - a compact microscope. It's called a portable trichinelloscope. Below are its main characteristics:

1. One battery of this device can operate for 60-65 hours.
2. Weight with packaging – 0.7 kg.
3. The dimensions of the device are 24.0x7.3 cm.
4. Service life – 3 years.
5. The temperature at which the device can operate is from +50 to – 20 degrees.
6. There are quite powerful devices, the magnification factor of which is 50, but if you wish, you can buy a trichinelloscope, the power of which is 200.

Thanks to this, rapid analysis of meat can be carried out at home or in the field - it all depends on whether it was hunting or slaughtering, for example, a pig at home.

Of course, the cost of such a device is not very small. But if you consider that its presence will help preserve health (and, sometimes, life), then such a price is not so high. In addition, several people can purchase a compact microscope, for example, neighbors or those who go hunting together. Then the cost of the device will be affordable to almost anyone.

What should you look for when self-testing for trichinosis using this device? The capsules must be found. They can be oval or round in shape. There should be triangular-shaped fat deposits on their periphery. There is usually a larva inside. Using a 1% methylene blue solution can improve the ability to view the larvae. If there is very little limestone on the capsule, 5% hydrochloric acid should be added to the cut. Just two or three drops are enough to determine whether the material is infected.

In addition, when doing analysis at home, you need to be very careful not to confuse the capsules of trichinosis larvae with:

1. Air bubbles. The larvae vary in size. In addition, they have a well-defined black border.
2. Concretions. They differ in shape and size. It is necessary to clarify the obtained data after using NS1.
3. Sarcocysts, which are distinguished by the internal structure of a mesh-like appearance and elongated shape.
4. Immature Finns. They are oval shaped and larger.

To avoid mistakes, one microscope device is not enough - you definitely need to know the “enemy in person”, that is, study well the photos on the Internet depicting helminths of this species. Moreover, you need to pay attention to those where the larvae are removed from the meat in order to have an idea of ​​what it looks like in life.

In laboratories, artificial gastric juice is sometimes used for analysis. The muscles dissolve in it. You can carry out such a check on the meat of an animal, for example, a beaver, if you purchase this material in advance and take it with you on a hunt.

If during the analysis it was possible to find only one larva, the entire carcass will have to be disposed of. Moreover, with the head and esophagus. In this case, experts recommend using only internal fat and internal organs for food.

Thus, examining the carcass of a hunted or slaughtered domestic animal is not something simple. And if you consider that the lives of those who will cook and eat meat products depend on the quality of the inspection, then it is better to entrust this matter to professionals, although this does not give a 100% guarantee: there have been cases when, even after tasting fresh meat that has passed the inspection, wild boar, bear, beaver, people became infected with trichinosis larvae. This is because it is very difficult to detect Trichinella, especially in the initial stages, even using the most modern equipment. Taking this into account, it is necessary to cook the meat, subjecting it to high-quality heat treatment and not eating it half-raw, so experts do not recommend cooking rare steak.

In addition, in order to avoid infection with trichinosis, in order to preserve health and nerves, it is not advisable to purchase raw meat products at spontaneous markets: even the documents provided there are not a guarantee of the quality of the inspection and do not indicate that the certificate was received for the carcass that is in sale.

In a fight with a wild boar, one person risks his life - the hunter. When a boar is dead and turned into food, the lives of everyone who ate it are at risk. The source of danger is trichinosis.

According to statistics from the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Belarusian State University of Medicine, “in the Soviet era, 80% of all cases of trichinosis occurred in Belarus. Since gaining independence, from 10 to 100 cases of disease have been registered in our country per year.”

- What are the consequences of Trichinella entering the human body?

It all depends on the moment you go to the doctor. If it is late, trichinella will reach the muscle tissue. In general, the “life path” of Trichinella is as follows: entry into the gastric tract - achievement of sexual maturity - mating of male and female Trichinella - birth of larvae - their penetration into the blood vessels - entry of Trichinella into muscle tissue.

- When do the first signs of the disease appear?

Maybe on the 3rd day, or maybe after 3 weeks.

- What are the symptoms of the disease?

It all starts with a sudden rise in temperature and diarrhea. Then follow: fever, intoxication, swelling of the eyelids, facial pastiness, conjunctivitis, skin rashes. Finally, severe pain in the masticatory and intercostal muscles. It should be repeated that internal organs and the central nervous system are affected at an advanced stage.

- Which animal meat is most dangerous?

Trichinosis is the result of animals feeding on carrion. Therefore, it is primarily found in carnivorous and omnivorous animals: wild pig and wild boar, nutria, raccoon, badger, bear, etc.

- Can heat or other processing of meat protect against disease?

Only a laboratory will give a 100% guarantee. There is an opinion that “if laboratory control is not possible (camping trip, hunting far from civilization, etc.), you should boil the meat for 2.5 - 3 hours. The thickness of the pieces of meat should not exceed 2.5 cm". This is not true. Trichinella “goes” into the broth and remains in the meat.

Long-term storage of canned pork, sausages, etc. also ineffective - smoking, drying and salting do not destroy Trichinella. Under no circumstances should you try raw minced meat on your tongue.

- Where can I check the meat? How much will it cost?

The test is carried out using the compressor trichinoscopy method and costs Br5810. There are laboratories at large food markets. A more accurate analysis - by digestion in gastric juice - will cost Br7500. It will be placed in the laboratory at the address: st. Gursky, 42.

- What does “more accurate analysis” mean?

- The “digestion research method” imitates the work of the human stomach. The meat being tested is twisted in a meat grinder, then placed in artificial gastric juice at human body temperature for 1.5 hours.

There are cases when the microscope did not detect Trichinella. But after checking them using the “digestion” method, darkness was discovered.

- How much meat should be sent for analysis?

For research, you do not need to take the entire carcass to the laboratory; 120 g of meat is enough. Ideally, this is the intercostal diaphragm - the hymen that separates the animal's intestines from the chest. This is where Trichinella manifests itself first.

- When is meat rejected?

If at least one larva is found, the entire carcass must be disposed of.

- When was the last outbreak of this insidious infectious disease recorded?

This winter, a student from Vitebsk, returning from vacation, brought wild boar meat to Minsk. The hostel threw a feast on this occasion.

The next semester, 13 people were met at the hospital.

Because Eating dogs and cats is unusual for most nationalities; pigs have earned a bad reputation as the main carriers of Trichinella. It is when preparing their meat that special attention should be paid to thorough frying/cooking, since the death of Trichinella is guaranteed only at a temperature of 50°C (cooking time 570 minutes). However, according to current standards (“Rules for veterinary inspection of slaughter animals and veterinary and sanitary examination of meat and meat products"), meat contaminated with Trichinella (if even 1 larva is detected in 24 cuts) must be destroyed; it is prohibited in factories even to be used for stewing. However, in theory, to ensure the safety of contaminated meat, the temperature regime should be maintained for a certain time: at a temperature of 50 °C, meat should be processed for 570 minutes; 51.1 °C - 270 minutes; 52.2 °C - 120 minutes; 53.4 °C - 60 minutes; 54.5 °C - 30 minutes; 55.6 °C - 15 minutes; 56.7 °C - 6 minutes; 57.8 °C - 3 minutes; 58.9 °C - 2 minutes; 60.0 °C - 1 minute; 62.2 °C - instant destruction of larvae.

This very expensive device, the price of which varies from 7 to 45,700 rubles (depending on the magnification factor), consists of: a compact microscope; an electric illuminator; a mirror (can replace the illuminator, focusing sunlight); a compressorium (two transparent glass plates, between which the cut of meat is compressed). The illuminator of a portable microscope is designed specifically for working in road conditions from a car cigarette lighter. However, purchasing the device is not enough. A hunter or pig farmer needs to carefully study the photos of encapsulated Trichinella taken by scientists using a microscope, and it is advisable to focus on those photos that were taken in muscle tissue. This is what Trichinella looks like in muscles under a microscope

Despite the complexity of the described procedure and the high cost of the device, self-testing of meat is just a quick test compared to laboratory research. It is extremely unwise to trust such a test with your health and life, therefore, even with the apparent absence of Trichinella, animal meat (especially wolf, bear, wild boar, beaver, badger, chickens or pigs) should be subjected to thorough heat treatment. These helminths do not live in organs and internal fat, so they can be used even when meat is massively infected with Trichinella. Just in case, subcutaneous lard must be melted, maintaining a temperature of 100 °C for 20 minutes. LABORATORY TESTING OF MEAT If the hunter or farmer has the opportunity, it is advisable to send animal meat for a professional laboratory test for trichinosis. There are several reasons for this: veterinary experts have extensive experience in detecting representatives of all types of Trichinella, including non-encapsulated T. pseudospiralis, T. papuae and T. zimbabwensis, which can easily be missed by an amateur; laboratories use expensive microscopes, much more accurate than portable ones Trichinelloscope devices; the tests themselves are also more detailed - sections are taken not only on the diaphragm, but also on the intercostal, gastrocnemius, chewing muscles and tongue muscles, and pieces of meat are dissolved in artificial gastric juice.

What animals get sick

Trichinosis is an acute or chronic invasive disease of many species of animals and humans, the causative agent of which is Nematoda Trichinella spiralis.

What animals get sick

Among domestic animals, pigs and dogs are affected, and among wild animals, carnivores and omnivores are susceptible: wild boars, badgers, foxes, wolves, hares, nutria and many rodents. Any of the listed species can become a source of human infection with this disease.

In addition, scientists have identified a capsular pathogen also in birds - Trichinella pseudospiralis.

Forms of the disease and symptoms

There are two types of the disease: intestinal (mature) and muscular (larval).

Humans and animals become infected by eating contaminated meat containing live encapsulated larvae. In the gastrointestinal tract, the capsules are digested, the larvae emerge from it and are localized in the duodenum. After 24-26 hours, sexually mature individuals are formed, which burrow into the intestinal mucosa and hatch young larvae after 5-6 days.
Once they enter the bloodstream, they spread throughout the body. Only those of them that fall into the striated muscles (these are all skeletal muscles) receive further development.

During the maturation of the larvae, a person experiences allergic reactions, swelling of the face, an increase in body temperature to 38-40 degrees, and muscle pain.

A capsule is formed around the Trichinella, and the larva itself is twisted into a spiral. The shape of the capsules varies among different animal species. After 6 months, deposits of lime salts begin in the capsules, and after 15-16 months complete calcification occurs. They can remain in this state for tens or even hundreds of years.

Trichinosis meat is not only a source of the causative agent of serious human disease, but also a toxic product. They are not destroyed either during heat treatment of meat or at sub-zero temperatures; they are preserved in corned beef with meat streaks

Symptoms of the disease depend on the number of larvae that have entered the body and the stage of the disease. If their number exceeds 5 pieces per 1 kg of body weight, then this is a fatal infection.

Stages of disease development in humans:

1) Art. invasion: occurs approximately 5-7 days after infection, when Trichinella actively multiply in the intestines. In this case, there is general lethargy, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, bowel dysfunction (diarrhea)

2) Art. migration: occurs within 10-14 days after infection. Here, swelling of the face, allergic rashes on the skin, muscle pain (especially in the arms and legs) are noted, and body temperature rises to 39-40 degrees.
It is at this stage that they turn to doctors for help. And here the outcome of the further development of the disease depends on the number of larvae present in the patient’s body. The patient's cardiovascular, respiratory and nervous systems may be affected.

3) Art. encapsulation: noted closer to recovery, approximately 6-8 days after stage 2. But muscle recovery is difficult, since the capsules cause erosion in the muscles. Complications after recovery are still noted in the form of pneumonia, myocarditis and even meningoencephalitis. It could also be fatal.

Treatment

In the first two weeks, anthelmintic and protozoal drugs are used, such as vermox, albendazole, thiabendazole. The dosage is prescribed by doctors. These substances have a detrimental effect on helminths in the intestines and their larvae.
If the body is severely damaged, re-treatment with vermox is carried out. And also the necessary symptomatic treatment if the respiratory, cardiovascular and nervous systems of the body are affected. However, after the patient is discharged, muscle pain can persist for up to six months.

How to detect meat contamination

The disease is very dangerous, so anyone who hunts or uses wild animals should be very careful. It is imperative to conduct a study of all, namely all carcasses of wild boars, bears, badgers and nutria.
You should not rely on chance, all this can lead to dire consequences. For this reason, avoid buying animal meat from your hands; no one can guarantee that it is clean. It is very likely that the animal poached will not be tested.

The most reliable way to diagnose diseases is in laboratory conditions. There the animals undergo trichinoscopy. To do this, 2 samples of the diaphragm muscle at the place of its attachment to the spine (legs), 60 g each, are submitted to the laboratory. In addition, chewing, calf, intercostal muscles and tongue muscles. Pieces are taken in those areas where muscle tissue passes into tendons.

From each sample, sections the size of an oat grain are taken: 72 sections from the home, 24 from the home ones. The sections are placed on the bottom glass of the compressorium, covered with the top glass and crushed using screws. Next, the study is carried out under a microscope at low magnification or on a special trichinelloscope.

What are we looking for?

They look for round or oval-shaped capsules, on the periphery of which triangular deposits of fat are visible. It is possible to distinguish the larva inside the capsules. In cases where the study is difficult for some reason, a 1% solution of methylene blue is applied.

If the capsule is already sufficiently calcified, Trichinella cannot be seen, so add it to the cut for 1-2 minutes. a couple of drops of 5% hydrochloric acid.

In order not to confuse the capsules, you need to distinguish:

• from air bubbles - different in size, have a pronounced black border,
• from immature Finns - they are larger, oval in shape,
• from sarcocysts - elongated shape, have an internal mesh structure,
• from stones - of different sizes and shapes, clarified after exposure to HCl.

There is another known laboratory method for identifying contaminated meat - dissolving muscles in artificial gastric juice.

If at least 1 larva is found, the head, carcass and entire esophagus are disposed of. Internal organs, internal fat - no restrictions

As you can see, detecting trichinella, even with the appropriate equipment, is extremely difficult, so it is better to entrust all this to a specialist.

But what about those who simply do not have the opportunity to do this? For example, hunters dealing with fur-bearing animals spend more than one month on land 10 kilometers from civilization. Unfortunately, there is currently no known simple way to detect contamination of meat. Neither a thorough visual examination of the legs of the diaphragm, nor prolonged boiling, nor freezing will guarantee the safety of the product. Remember this.

More complete and clear information can be obtained in this film, shot back in Soviet times, but which has not lost its relevance today.