Norovirus outbreaks at all-time high nationwide

Whether part of the virus' natural cycle or the result of heightened surveillance, the flare-up is causing chaos in health facilities and other closed settings.

By Victoria Stagg Elliott, AMNews staff. Feb. 17, 2003.

The norovirus, also known as the Norwalk-like virus, has had a busy year.

In January 2002, it visited hospitals in Glasgow, Scotland. In March, it appeared at a pre-Oscar party in California. And in July, it crashed a golf tournament in Arizona before heading back to school in Wales in October. Finally, in November and December 2002, the bug took several cruises around the Caribbean. All the while, it made regular visits to nursing homes and hospitals.

Wherever it went, the virus left an impression -- making hundreds of people violently ill. Two deaths have also been connected to outbreaks.

The bottom line, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is that acute gastroenteritis linked to norovirus is at an all-time high. And, although hard numbers are not available because norovirus is not a reportable infection, anecdotal evidence supports this conclusion.

Accounts of norovirus outbreaks on the alert service of the International Society for Infectious Disease became so numerous by the end of the year that they had to be bundled into one big daily report rather than sent out individually. And many public health officials and physicians working in environments prone to outbreaks say that they feel like they are seeing more of the bug than ever.

"I've been doing nursing home care for 25 years, and I've never seen anything quite like this," said William Kavesh, MD, MPH, a Philadelphia geriatrician. "This year has been particularly bad."