Trichinosis (a.k.a. trichinellosis) is a parasitic disease caused by the trichina worm, Trichinella spiralis. There's a whole Trichinella page devoted to T. spiralis. The CDC factsheet on trichinosis is scary:
When a human or animal eats meat that contains infective Trichinella cysts, the acid in the stomach dissolves the hard covering of the cyst and releases the worms. The worms pass into the small intestine and, in 1-2 days, become mature. After mating, adult females lay eggs. Eggs develop into immature worms, travel through the arteries, and are transported to muscles. Within the muscles, the worms curl into a ball and encyst (become enclosed in a capsule).
Apparently, you can "[f]reeze pork less than 6 inches thick for 20 days at 5° F to kill any worms," but this approach doesn't work for game. Microwaves are not enough to kill the parasite.
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