Abstract
As of 4 November, 2012, 100 patients with an acute muscular Sarcocystis-like illness associated with travel to Tioman Island, Malaysia, have been identified. Thirty-five travelled there mostly during July and August 2011 and 65 mostly during July and August 2012, suggesting an ongoing outbreak. Epidemiological investigations are ongoing. Public health agencies and practicing clinicians should be aware of this rarely-reported disease in humans and consider it as differential diagnosis in travellers returning from Tioman Island.
Highlights
Sarcocystis species are intracellular protozoan parasites with an obligatory two-host predator-prey lifecycle [5]
Definitive diagnosis of muscular sarcocystosis relies on identifying sarcocysts in a muscle biopsy sample; DNA amplification and PCR testing of muscle tissue and serology is experimental and not widely available
Histologic examination and DNA amplification is being performed at CDC on existing muscle biopsy specimens from outbreak patients to confirm the diagnosis of muscular sarcocystosis and to identify the responsible Sarcocystis species
Summary
Ongoing outbreak of an acute muscular Sarcocystis-like illness among travellers returning from Tioman Island, Malaysia, 2011-2012. As of 4 November, 2012, 100 patients with an acute muscular Sarcocystis-like illness associated with travel to Tioman Island, Malaysia, have been identified. From 27 July to 4 November 2012, GeoSentinel [1], working with EuroTravNet [2] and TropNet [3], has identified 65 patients with an acute muscular Sarcocystislike illness after recent travel to Tioman Island. All of these patients had traveled to Tioman, located off the east coast of peninsular Malaysia, mostly during July and August, 2012.
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