State Capitol Presentation on Rat Lungworm Disease

The rat lungworm parasite under a microscope. Photo courtesy of Dr. Susan Jarvi.

A Presentation on rat lungworm disease will be held by Dr. Richard Malik will be held on Wednesday, May 2, 2018 at 3 p.m. at the Hawai‘i State Capitol in room 325.

To aide in the fight against rat lungworm disease in Hawai‘i, Rep. Richard P. Creagan (Naʻālehu, Ocean View, Capt. Cook, Kealakekua, Kailua-Kona) and Sen. Mike Gabbard (Kapolei, Makakilo, and portions of ‘Ewa, Kalaeloa, Waipahū) will be sponsoring a presentation by infectious disease expert, Dr. Richard Malik, professor of veterinary medicine. The title of his presentation is “Rat Lungworm Disease: A One Health Approach Using Animals as Sentinels.”

Visiting from Australia, Dr. Malik was the first veterinarian to diagnose rat lungworm disease in dogs in Sydney, Australia in 1989. Dr. Malik is interested in assisting vets in Hawai‘i collate the cases they have seen to compare and contrast the patterns of disease in different parts of the islands with the outbreaks he has witnessed in Sydney and Brisbane. He is especially interested in whether the disease affects wildlife species that prey on rats or mollusks.

“Hawai‘i is currently having an outbreak of cases of rat lungworm in dogs, cats, and horses,” said Rep. Creagan. “Dr. Malik is here to help our veterinarians deal with this outbreak.”

This event is free and open to the public.