U.S. hit by new stomach bug spreading around globe
NEW YORK (AP) - A new strain of stomach bug sweeping the globe is taking over in the U.S., health officials say.
Since September, more than 140 outbreaks in the U.S. have been caused by the new Sydney strain of norovirus. It may not be unusually dangerous; some scientists don't think it is. But it is different, and many people might not be able to fight off its gut-wrenching effects.
Clearly, it's having an impact. The new strain is making people sick in Japan, Western Europe, and other parts of the world. It was first identified last year in Australia and called the Sydney strain.
In the U.S., it is now accounting for about 60 percent of norovirus outbreaks, according to report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Norovirus - once known as Norwalk virus - is highly contagious and often spreads in places like schools, cruise ships and nursing homes, especially during the winter. Last month, 220 people on the Queen Mary II were stricken during a Caribbean cruise.
Sometimes mistakenly called stomach flu, the virus causes bouts of vomiting and diarrhea for a few days.
Every two or three years, a new strain evolves - the last was in 2009. The Sydney strain's appearance has coincided with a spike in influenza, perhaps contributing to the perception that this is a particularly bad flu season in the U.S.
Ian Goodfellow, a prominent researcher at England's University of Cambridge, calls norovirus 'the Ferrari of viruses' for the speed at which it passes through a large group of people.
"It can sweep through an environment very, very quickly. You can be feeling quite fine one minute and within several hours suffer continuous vomiting and diarrhea," he said.
Health officials have grown better at detecting new strains and figuring out which one is the culprit. They now know that norovirus is also the most common cause of food poisoning in the U.S.
It's spread by infected food handlers who don't do a good job washing their hands after using the bathroom. But unlike salmonella and other foodborne illnesses, norovirus can also spread in the air, through droplets that fly when a sick person vomits.
"It's a headache" to try to control, said Dr. John Crane, a University of Buffalo infectious disease specialist who had to deal with a norovirus outbreak in a hospital ward a couple of years ago.
Each year, noroviruses cause an estimated 21 million illnesses and 800 deaths, the CDC says.
For those infected, there's really no medicine. They just have to ride it out for the day or two of severe symptoms, and guard against dehydration, experts said.
The illness even got the attention of comedian Stephen Colbert, who this week tweeted: "Remember, if you're in public and have the winter vomiting bug, be polite and vomit into your elbow."
Since September, more than 140 outbreaks in the U.S. have been caused by the new Sydney strain of norovirus. It may not be unusually dangerous; some scientists don't think it is. But it is different, and many people might not be able to fight off its gut-wrenching effects.
Clearly, it's having an impact. The new strain is making people sick in Japan, Western Europe, and other parts of the world. It was first identified last year in Australia and called the Sydney strain.
In the U.S., it is now accounting for about 60 percent of norovirus outbreaks, according to report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Norovirus - once known as Norwalk virus - is highly contagious and often spreads in places like schools, cruise ships and nursing homes, especially during the winter. Last month, 220 people on the Queen Mary II were stricken during a Caribbean cruise.
Sometimes mistakenly called stomach flu, the virus causes bouts of vomiting and diarrhea for a few days.
Every two or three years, a new strain evolves - the last was in 2009. The Sydney strain's appearance has coincided with a spike in influenza, perhaps contributing to the perception that this is a particularly bad flu season in the U.S.
Ian Goodfellow, a prominent researcher at England's University of Cambridge, calls norovirus 'the Ferrari of viruses' for the speed at which it passes through a large group of people.
"It can sweep through an environment very, very quickly. You can be feeling quite fine one minute and within several hours suffer continuous vomiting and diarrhea," he said.
Health officials have grown better at detecting new strains and figuring out which one is the culprit. They now know that norovirus is also the most common cause of food poisoning in the U.S.
It's spread by infected food handlers who don't do a good job washing their hands after using the bathroom. But unlike salmonella and other foodborne illnesses, norovirus can also spread in the air, through droplets that fly when a sick person vomits.
"It's a headache" to try to control, said Dr. John Crane, a University of Buffalo infectious disease specialist who had to deal with a norovirus outbreak in a hospital ward a couple of years ago.
Each year, noroviruses cause an estimated 21 million illnesses and 800 deaths, the CDC says.
For those infected, there's really no medicine. They just have to ride it out for the day or two of severe symptoms, and guard against dehydration, experts said.
The illness even got the attention of comedian Stephen Colbert, who this week tweeted: "Remember, if you're in public and have the winter vomiting bug, be polite and vomit into your elbow."
Captain Trips sounds like something you would get from a cruise ship. They should have named it that.
 @Elvis Stephen King... chuckle... :D)
Well, it's not exactly accurate to say it's a new virus. It's a new strain of Norovirus. Â I had it once, got it from a food worker that was obviously ill and came back to work too soon. I remember once sitting in a restaurant before we ordered, and the waitresses were talking nearby about how one of them was "throwing up and sick" all night, but came to work. Â We changed our mind about eating there. Â It would go a long way if people who work with the public would not go to work the day after being sick with something like this. And parents who send their kids to school the next day after the kid is throwing up all night (they do that all the time.) Â Stupid.Â
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And the cruise ships are a HUGE reason for this virus to be spread around. They are floating petri dishes. Every time one of them arrives in Seattle, with an outbreak, you can count on the virus being out of control in the City within a few weeks. For every sick passenger, they go to hotels, restaurants, back to work, etc.  I would never ever take a cruise. Yuck.   Just wash your damn hands!!  It's not rocket science folks!  And if you're sick, stay home for at least 24 hours after you're actively sick.  Just because you haven't barfed since 3am, doesn't mean you should go to work or school.  Seriously.  Wash your hands before you eat, after the bathroom, before you cook. While washing is the best way to protect  yourself, when you're out running errands, use a sanitizer. You're in a store touching the cart handle where someone put their kid, signing a credit car slip with a public pen, etc.   The Norovirus is also easily spread in the air when someone is barfing, that's why many clueless people get sick when someone in their house is sick.  I've seen so many parents get sick because they're like "oh, billy was up all night sick, so I let him sleep in my bed."  Isolate the sickie in their room. Period.  Bring food in and out for them. Ban them from the kitchen for a few days after they're actively sick.  Also if you have more than one bathroom, have them use one that no one else will use for a few days, then clean it thoroughly.  Seriously you would think that this was common sense, but I see people making that mistake all the time.  The problem is a parent who, for some stupid reason, shares cups and sandwiches etc. with their kids, then takes the illness back to work with them, and vice versa.  Common sense hygiene will really help.  Had the person who got me sick been more responsible, it never would have happened.. BUT.. not one person who lived with me got sick from me. Â
@DT Good point. I carry hand sanitizer everywhere I go. I also use it at the ATM's, gas pumps, and the places, that you mentioned above. I have been in restrooms at public places and you will not believe the women who do not wash their hands or even use soap. I make an extremly loud comment when I see that. Also, I use a paper towel to turn off the faucet, and open the door. Like you said Common Sense people.
Keep hand sanitizer with you all the time. They sell the little pocket size which are very handy. Use it before and after any public exposure like door handles, cart handles and money is another one. This stuff really works. If you are going on an airplane...... take a bath in the stuff.......... na just kiddin.
Epidemiologists tell us that the hands are the dirtiest part of the human body. Therefore people should wash their hands BEFORE using the bathroom to avoid contaminating their âjunkâ.
Exactly! I've been saying this for years!
People, if you're ever in a restaurant restroom and see an employee not wash their hands report them. That person deserves to be fired.
 @SgtPepperSpray I've flat out told an employee to wash their hands after working the register, and then going to prepare my food. Or the worst are the ones that wear the gloves.. but then wipe their nose or mouth or fix their hair while wearing them.  Speak up.. it's okay.Â
 @SgtPepperSpray Not just in restaurants, employees in any work environment.
 @SgtPepperSpray I ALWAYS do and I completely agree. It is flat out gross and lazy if you're in food service and you don't wash after you wipe.
 @Howard Beale I remember the spot that KIRO that took swabs from grocery store cart handles and the largest concentration was human feces, I carry hand sanitizer in all of our vehicles for use before and after shopping.
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The rules are wash with HOT soapy water and keep your hands away from your nose and eyes. I haven't been sick for years.
Wash your hands!!! Â
My instructions for upcoming surgery say "If you feel the need to vomit please turn your head".
 @Klondiko So that must be what the Doctor at the induction center meant when I was drafted for Vietnam. I'll never forget 'turn your head and cough'.