Norovirus Lawyer & Attorney : Marler Clark : Norovirus Blog

Every health department should follow in the foot steps of Kalamazoo County.  Noroviruses are estimated to cause 23 million cases of gastroenteritis in the U.S. per year. Full Story

KALAMAZOO -- Health officials say it spreads easily from person to person, but it can be prevented.

Thursday, Kalamazoo County Health and Community Service Department officials will hold a symposium to teach long-term and institutional care providers how Norovirus is spread and how to prevent it.

Last year, there were 145 Norovirus outbreaks in the State of Michigan.

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BY ELIZABETH SIMPSON
THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
FULL STORY
VIRGINIA BEACH - The number of norovirus cases reported in an outbreak of the stomach virus at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital increased from 23 to 32 during the weekend, the hospital said Monday.

Five of the additional nine cases, however, were ones that had occurred last week but weren't reported until news about the outbreak surfaced.

Sentara Healthcare said the total number of patients who have been sickened now stands at eight, while the number of staff made ill is 21. In addition, two visitors and one doctor reported having the illness last week.

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Health officials believe that a nursing home in Washington, North Carolina has been struck by a Norovirus outbreak. The Norovirus is highly contagious and usually persists for 24 to 60 hours.  Full Story from the Washington Daily Press

About 15 to 20 residents at Ridgewood Manor have experienced the symptoms over the course of about a week, according to different estimates from the nursing home and the Beaufort County Health Department.

The virus, which includes symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea, has also affected “seven or eight” nursing home employees, according to Health Director Roxanne Holloman. The bug seems to last about 24 hours in each patient it affects, said Ridgewood administrator Lisa Hartley.

The illness is believed to be caused by some form of the Norovirus, which is a generic term given to viruses that affect gastrointestinal functions. The virus surfaced at Ridgewood last week, Hartley said. The health department was called in Friday to assess the situation.

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The Norovirus has spread through Sentara hospital in Virginia Beach, sickening 23 people.  Full Story

VIRGINIA BEACH -- More than 20 people have contracted the Norovirus while at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital.

The Virginia Department of Health has confirmed 23 cases and preventative measures are in place to keep the virus from spreading, WAVY-TV 10 reported.

"We're doing everything we can to reduce the chance of the virus being in other places in the hospital," said hospital Administrator Dr. Ray Troiano.

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Forest Hills Central High School in Michigan has been reopened after it was closed last week due to a possible norovirus outbreak.  Full story

Cleaning crews spent all night scrubbing the walls and surfaces of the building. Officials say between 70-80 students all showed the same symptoms this week - stomach cramps, diarrhea and vomiting. The Health Department said the symptoms are similar to a norovirus, but a spokeswoman said they're not ready to say that's what it is until they finish the investigation.

They're tracking back what the students ate in the previous 72 hours. Talks around the school has been about breadsticks in the cafeteria are to blame, but the Health Department said they've found no evidence of that. Symptoms, they added, usually take 24 hours to develop.

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A Norovirus outbreak has struck Elizabeth Blackwell Elementary in Sammamish, Washington, sickening more than 120 students.  Full story from The Seattle Times

Nearly a quarter of Elizabeth Blackwell Elementary School students in Sammamish were home sick on Tuesday, and county health officials suspect it could be a norovirus outbreak.

More than 120 of the school's 560 students were out sick, and 15 more were sent home during the day, said Kathryn Reith, spokeswoman for Lake Washington School District. Nine staff members were out sick Monday and eight had stayed home sick Tuesday. The district heard that some parents kept their children home as a precaution, Reith said.

No other schools in King County reported high numbers of ill students this week, but it's not uncommon to see waves of these kinds of illness move through schools and other institutions, said James Apa, spokesman for Public Health -- Seattle & King County.

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Michigan health agencies are emphasizing safe food handling practices after hundreds of Lansing-area patrons were sickened by the norovirus in 2006 from outbreaks at Carrabba's Italian Grill, Bravo Cucina Italiana's and Applebee's.  Full Story from Tanya Bigham

Lansing - An outbreak involves two or more unassociated individuals who became sick after dining at the same facility, said Sandy Enness, director of communications for Michigan State University’s National Food Safety and Toxicology Center.

The law firm of Marler Clark based in Seattle, is representing customers in their lawsuits against the three Lansing-area restaurants.

According to Marler Clark, Carrabba’s Italian Grill was the first local restaurant to have a norovirus outbreak in January 2006, with more than 400 consumers becoming ill. Bravo Cucina Italiana’s outbreak occurred in May and affected up to 360 people. In December, 32 people were sickened after eating at Applebee’s.

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News Channel 3 has reported that Croyden Avenue School will be closed Thursday and Friday due to a Norovirus outbreak.  Full Story

Michigan - The school is being cleaned because of one confirmed case of the norovirus. Several other students are also sick.

The school is taking all necessary precautions to make sure no more students get sick by dis-infecting the classrooms.

Since the school serves special needs students with specific medical needs, they are not taking any risk when it comes to their health.

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The Green Leafe Restaurant is being investigated for a norovirus outbreak after two bands, My Chemical Romance and The Muse, became ill and had to cancel their show on April 29 at Penn State University.  Full story from Seth Freedland of the Daily Press.

Williamsburg - Peninsula Health District officials are investigating whether food poisoning or something else is responsible for making two rock bands and local crew members sick after appearing at the College of William and Mary Saturday night.

Officials said they are still days away from having enough information to know what happened, but they are investigating whether the illness may have come from a catered meal by Williamsburg restaurant, the Green Leafe.

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