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In recent months, three visitors to Big Island in Hawaii have been infected with rat lungworm disease, a potentially disabling parasite, health officials said.
The Hawaii Ministry of Health announced Thursday that it has received confirmation of the three US cases of the Center for Disease Control and that they are not related.
The new cases bring to five the total number of confirmed cases in 2019 and ten in 2018, the health department said.
Angiostrongylosis, or lungworm disease in rats, is caused by a parasitic worm and can have serious effects on the brain and spinal cord of a person. Most people are infected when they accidentally consume one of the worms, according to the health department.
Common symptoms include severe headaches and neck stiffness, but more severe cases can cause neurological problems, severe pain, and long-term disability. According to the CDC, some cases can cause a rare form of meningitis.
CDC: A parasite called rat lungworm may be more prevalent in the United States than one thinks
The parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis takes its name from the fact that it infects the rats, which then propagate their larvae in faeces ingested by snails and slugs. The rats then eat the infected snails and slugs, then the larvae mature to become adult worms, says the CDC.
In Hawaii, the three unrelated cases came from people ingesting both slugs and unwashed fruits or vegetables, according to health authorities.
In one case, a visitor deliberately ate a slug on a challenge in December 2018. The Department of Health stated that the person became ill but was not hospitalized.
In a second case in February, the person became ill, but the way she was infected was not confirmed. The health department says that the patient remembers eating homemade salads on vacation.
The third person, who was hospitalized, was probably infected by eating unwashed raw fruits or vegetables, health officials said.
More: A man left paralyzed after eating a slug died, according to Australian media
Health officials advised people to wash raw fruits and vegetables, especially leafy greens, and look for worms on these foods before eating them.
The CDC states that the disease is difficult to diagnose and that there is no treatment, but that it disappears in most cases because the parasite can not survive in the human body.
Follow Ryan Miller, USA TODAY, on Twitter @RyanW_Miller
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