Norovirus Lawyer & Attorney : Marler Clark : Norovirus Blog

Norovirus may be to blame for dozens of illnesses as Sylvan Elementary in Alamance County.  Full Story

Burlington, NC -- Students and staff at a local elementary school were out sick on Wednesday, and health officials say a serious stomach virus may be the reason.

According to the Alamance County health department a "large number" of adults and children were absent from Sylvan Elementary school complaining of nausea, vomiting and fever.

The symptoms match those of the virus known as "norovirus" that has been affecting a large number of people in North Carolina over the last few months.

The virus's symptoms come on suddenly and generally last two to three days.

Health officials say anyone with illness who is unable to keep down food and liquids or who is having bloody diarrhea should see their doctor. And if parents have questions about their child's health, they should contact their child's doctor.

The best way to combat the virus is proper hand washing and keeping sick students at home.

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Stephen Smith of the Boston Globe Staff wrote:

Boston health officials reported today that their review of an ongoing outbreak of gastrointestinal illness at Hebrew Rehabilitation Center shows that 241 patients and 151 staff members have fallen ill since Feb. 21.

Those figures are substantially higher than Friday, when the Boston Public Health Commission last released figures on the outbreak at the Roslindale facility. Then, 225 patients and 119 staff were listed as having experienced nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea -- classic symptoms of norovirus, the infection that has sickened tens of thousands in New England and across the country this winter.

But Tom Lyons, spokesman for the Boston health agency, cautioned that the latest numbers, which indicate a total of 392 people have become ill, do not necessarily reflect a burst of new infections. Instead, the city's investigation is identifying people who became sick earlier in the outbreak but who weren't included in the count.

In the past day, only three new cases have been recorded, Lyons said. Still, he said, city disease trackers are reluctant to declare that the outbreak is trailing off until there have been several additional days when few if any additional infections are reported.

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A stomach illness suspected to be the highly contagious norovirus has sickened at least 100 people who took part in a regional dance competition last weekend, health officials said Wednesday.  Norovirus, also called the Norwalk virus, causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramping, and can lead to more serious illnesses in the elderly and infirm. Billings suffered a community-wide outbreak last year, and several nursing homes were struck with the disease earlier this winter.  "It's still early in our investigation. We don't know exactly what we're dealing with yet," said Barbara Schneeman, spokeswoman for the Yellowstone City-County Health Department.  Schneeman said most of those reporting symptoms took part in or attended the Spotlight Dance Cup Regional Dance, held March 9-11 at the Billings Holiday Inn.

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According to WAFF News - Outbreaks of norovirus are popping up everywhere

The height of flu season is upon us, but this year, there's another illness that's grabbing the spotlight. Outbreaks of norovirus, the nasty group of stomach bugs that get attention when they hit a cruise ship, are showing up everywhere. It closed a Washington hotel and is popping up on college campuses and in communities across the US.

"It's epidemic proportions in many places in the country unfortunately," says Eliana Perrin, MD, University of North Carolina Pediatrician.

It is norovirus. A group of bugs most people know as the stomach flu. Perrin has seen a number of cases. "I've actually seen it more as a parent. I've seen some children in our daycare. They're affected, their families are affected, everybody is sick."

Across campus, Scientist Ralph Baric runs a norovirus lab. He says this year's rampant outbreaks are linked to a strain called G24 that first emerged about a decade ago. "It's been changing every year this year seems to be particularly hot," says Baric.

It's causing a menu of stomach woes that often appear within 18 hours of exposure to the highly contagious virus. "Symptoms end about 48 hours later." People can still spread norovirus for weeks after the symptoms are gone and so can some people who never have symptoms. "About 30 percent of people we've done hematology studies with can be infected but don't actually become severely affected with clinical disease," says Baric. "Do the best you can with hand washing particularly after diapering a child," says Perrin.

More reason to keep washing those hands.

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At Least 124 Sickened

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- At least 124 students have been sickened in a suspected norovirus outbreak at a New Jersey college.

A spokesman at Fairleigh Dickinson University's Florham Park campus said students began falling ill Thursday. He said an undetermined number of faculty and staff members also have been sickened.

Crews are cleaning dormitory bathrooms and dining halls. The recreation center and pool were shut down for 24 hours for cleaning. Hand sanitizer is being distributed at the library, computer labs and the dining hall. Also, students are being urged to wash their sheets in hot water.

The 24-hour virus is spread person-to-person and causes flu-like systems including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

Florham Park health officials say test results later this week should confirm the cause of the outbreak. There are about 3,700 students on campus.

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THE ASSOCIATED PRESS - HOUSTON

The Food and Drug Administration says consumers should avoid eating raw oysters harvested from San Antonio Bay in Texas because more than two dozen people in Maryland became ill last month.

The FDA said 25 people developed nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and other symptoms after eating raw Texas oysters at a food event in Maryland during Feb. 9-11.

Testing by the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene indicated they had contracted norovirus, the FDA said. The virus can cause flu-like symptoms that may linger for several days.

The oyster beds in San Antonio Bay were shut down by the Texas Department of Health Services on Feb. 24 and remain closed while the FDA investigates.

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