Norovirus

Norovirus
Other names	Winter vomiting bug, stomach bug
Transmission electron microscope image of Norwalk virus. The white bar = 50 nm
Medical specialty	Emergency medicine, pediatrics
Symptoms	Diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, headache
Complications	Dehydration
Usual onset	12 to 48 hours after exposure
Duration	1 to 3 days
Causes	Norovirus
Diagnostic method	Based on symptoms
Prevention	Hand washing, disinfection of contaminated surfaces
Treatment	Supportive care (drinking sufficient fluids or intravenous fluids)
Frequency	685 million cases per year
Deaths	200,000 per year

Norovirus (or winter vomiting disease) is a common cause of gastroenteritis.

It causes non-bloody diarrhea (enteritis), vomiting, and stomach pain. Drinking lots of water is recommended to replace fluids lost from diarrhea and vomiting.

Risk factors include unsanitary food preparation. Diagnosis is generally based on symptoms.

Wash hands often and properly. Disinfect contaminated surfaces. There is no vaccine or specific treatment for norovirus.

Norovirus results in about 685 million cases of disease and 200,000 deaths globally a year. It is common.

Those under the age of five are most often affected, and in this group it results in about 50,000 deaths in the developing world. Norovirus infections occur more commonly during winter months. It often occurs in outbreaks, especially among those living in close quarters. In the United States, it is the cause of about half of all foodborne disease outbreaks. The virus is named after the city of Norwalk, Ohio, US where an outbreak occurred in 1968.

The virus had reported cases since 2022 in the United Kingdom due to COVID-19 pandemic, In 2024 the norovirus began spiking across in the United States.

References