Undiagnosed Deaths in Humans and Pigs in Papua New Guinea

February 21, 2007 — 
  [ES]

Reports are emerging concerning the deaths of 3 women in the Southern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The deaths are being associated in the reports with the consumption of contaminated pork and the reported deaths of an estimated 1000 pigs.

The pigs are reported to develop swollen necks, flu-like signs, fever, and the antemortem decay of body parts resulting in death within days. Experts from the area are surmising that anthrax may be the cause of the pig deaths and it is unclear if the human mortalities are coincidental or connected with the pig mortalities.

According to Mike Nunn, Principal Scientist Biosecurity Australia, who has worked in PNG for 13 years, anthrax is endemic in the pig population in the region. It results in a disease known locally as "sot win", or "short wind", due to the respiratory distress resulting from severe neck edema. He indicates that this strain of anthrax affects only the pigs and not the indigenous people or other livestock and that the locals regularly eat undercooked pork from pigs that have died from anthrax without any apparent adverse effects.

Thus, Nunn surmises that "the reported deaths of 3 indigenous women is most unlikely to be due to anthrax and likely to be due either to an unrelated disease or diseases or to "pig bel", a clostridial enterotoxaemia associated with the ingestion of large amounts of pork together with sweet potato, which contains a trypsin inhibitor that delays digestion long enough for clostridial numbers and toxin to build up to cause disease. Outbreaks of "pig bel" occur in association with events in which large amounts of pork are consumed: typically in large celebrations ("sing sings") or in outbreaks of disease (to salvage valuable meat of ill or dead pigs rather than see it wasted)."

Sources:
The National Online, February 19, 2007
ProMED-mail, February 21, 2007
Map of the region http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/australia/papua_newguinea_pol89.jpg