18 November 2004
Winter norovirus activity
With the onset of winter, a peak in activity of norovirus infection can be expected. Norovirus infection, sometimes more commonly called winter vomiting disease, is the most common cause of infectious gastroenteritis (stomach bugs / gut upset) and affects approximately 600,000 to 1 million people in the UK each year.
Outbreaks of norovirus are more common during the winter months and usually tend to affect people in semi-closed environments where large numbers of people congregate for periods of several days (for example, hospitals, residential and nursing homes and schools).
“Norovirus is easily transmitted from one person to another. However, the resulting illness is self-limiting. The symptoms caused will last for 12 to 60 hours and will start with the sudden onset of nausea followed by projectile vomiting and diarrhoea.
