Norovirus, also called the winter vomiting bug, is a common cause of sickness, diarrhea and gastroenteritis. Here is all about norovirus causes, symptoms and treatment
As indicated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), norovirus causes gastroenteritis in 19–21 million people for every year in the United States. The infection is additionally responsible for 56,000–71,000 yearly hospitalizations and 570–800 deaths in the U.S. every year.
In spite of the fact that norovirus more commonly causes infection during the winter months, it can affect people at any time of the year.
People at times mistakenly allude to a norovirus infection as “stomach flu.” The clinical term is gastroenteritis, and it doesn’t have an connection with the flu, which is a respiratory disease.
In this article, we characterize the symptoms and causes for norovirus and explain how to treat and prevent disease.
What is Norovirus?
Norovirus is a member from the Caliciviridae family of viruses. These viruses are responsible for about 90% of viral gastroenteritis flare-ups and near half of cases over the world.
Norovirus spreads in the feces and vomit of people and animals with the infection. People can get the infection by:
- consuming contaminated foods
- drinking contaminated water
- contacting their mouth with a similar hand that they simply used to contact somebody who has norovirus or a ontaminated surface.
It very well may be hard to dispose of noroviruses on the grounds that they can survive in hot and cold temperatures, and they are impervious to many disinfectants.
Noroviruses consistently go through genetic changes. For this reason, humans tend to develop a norovirus infection more than once during their lifetime, although the symptoms are usually less severe each time.
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Causes
The Department of Health and Human Services suggest that coming up next are the most widely recognized reasons for human norovirus diseases:
- contaminated foods
- shellfish
- prepared to-eat foods, for example, servings of mixed greens, ice, cookies, fruit, and sandwiches, that a specialist with a norovirus disease has taken care of
- any food that contains particles of the excrement or vomit of an person with norovirus.
Symptoms
The first symptom of norovirus is nausea.
Other common symptoms of norovirus include:
- watery or loose diarrhea
- fever and chills, which are usually mild
- stomach pain
- body aches
- vomiting
- headaches
- abdominal cramps
- feeling unwell and lethargic
During the concise period when symptoms are available, people can feel extremely sick and vomit frequently, regularly viciously and all of a sudden.
The CDC note that signs and symptoms typically last 1–3 days and show up somewhere in the range of 12 and 48 hours after the initial disease. At times, the runs may last longer than 3 days.
It is essential to take note of that once the symptoms have settled, the infection can at still spread through the stool and vomit for about 14 days.
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Treatment
No particular treatment exists for noroviral gastroenteritis. Rather, doctors aim to prevent dehydration and control symptoms.
Fasting won’t speed up recovery. People with norovirus should eat a light diet comprising of foods that are anything but difficult to process, for example, rice, bread, soups, and pasta. Babies with norovirus should keep on following their standard diet.
A few people may think that its gainful to take oral rehydration liquids. Examples of available products include Infalyte, Kao Lectrolyte, Naturalyte, Oralyte, and Pedialyte.
Dehydration can be unexpected and, for certain people, dangerous. People with lack of hydration who can’t drink enough fluids may need to get liquids intravenously.
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Prevention
The best way to prevent the spread of foodborne noroviruses is to practice proper food handling. Good hand hygiene and food cleaning are important for preventing the transmission of norovirus.
Noroviruses can survive freezing temperatures, as well as those as high as 140°F or 60°C. Some people may even develop an infection after eating steamed shellfish. Noroviruses can also survive in up to 10 parts per million of chlorine, levels that are much higher than those available in current public water systems.
Despite these survival features, experts say that relatively simple personal and food hygiene measures can significantly reduce the foodborne transmission of noroviruses.
The following steps can reduce a person’s risk of norovirus infection:
Avoiding risky foods: People should try to avoid shellfish that may have come from contaminated waters. They should also discard any foods that a person with norovirus may have prepared. People should thoroughly wash and scrub all fruits and vegetables.
Taking care when traveling: People who are traveling to a location with a less developed sanitation system should only use bottled water, even for brushing their teeth. It is also advisable to avoid buffets and uncooked foods.
Keeping the toilet seat down: When flushing a toilet, people should keep the toilet seat down to prevent infectious microbes from entering the air.
Handwashing: Washing the hands frequently and thoroughly with soap and warm water can reduce the risk of infection, especially after going to the bathroom or changing a diaper and before preparing meals.
Washing clothing and bedclothes: If these items could have become contaminated, people should wash them with hot, soapy water.
Using disposable towels: People who are especially vulnerable to infection, such as those caring for an infected person, should use disposable paper towels rather than cloth ones to dry their hands. The virus can survive for some time on objects.
Removing infected feces and vomit: People need to ensure that they flush these away and clean the surrounding toilet area immediately with a bleach-based household cleaner.
Cleaning surfaces: People should preferably clean with a bleach-based household cleaner. When possible, they should let the bleach remain on the surface for about 10 minutes. People with norovirus may often vomit violently, without warning. They should clean any surfaces near the vomit promptly and thoroughly, as the vomit can be infectious.
