TAIYUAN, AYOBANDUNG.COM – There’s a new virus from China. More than 70 students at a university in Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi Province, northern China, have suffered from diarrhea and vomiting since last Wednesday (7/10). Taiyuan Department of Disease Control and Prevention Sampled 28 Student Cases for Testing norovirus Wednesday and Saturday.
A total of 11 cases tested positive for norovirus. Reported on China.org on Tuesday (13/10), academic sources said as of Sunday 17.00, up to 22 patients with diarrhea and vomiting due to viruses and other factors were still being treated in the ‘Hospital.
The university has disinfected dormitories, classrooms, canteens and other public spaces, and monitored symptoms for all staff and students. Local control and prevention authorities are investigating the source of the infection.
Reported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), norovirus is a highly contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea. People of all ages can become infected and catch norovirus.
Norovirus is sometimes called stomach flu or stomach disease. However, norovirus disease is not related to the flu caused by the influenza virus.
Norovirus causes inflammation of the stomach or intestines. This is called acute gastroenteritis. A person usually experiences symptoms 12 to 48 hours after exposure to the norovirus. Most people with norovirus disease recover within 1 to 3 days.
If you have norovirus disease, you may feel very nauseous, vomit, or have diarrhea several times a day. This can lead to dehydration, especially in young children, older adults, and people with other illnesses. Most of the treatment is to replace body fluids with lots of drinking.
People with norovirus disease can shed billions of norovirus particles. However, only a few viral particles can make other people sick. A person can get norovirus disease more than once in his life because there are many types of norovirus.
Infection with one norovirus may not protect against another, but it is possible to develop immunity against some types of norovirus.
It is not known exactly how long this immunity lasts. This may explain why so many people of all ages were infected during the norovirus outbreak. Apart from that, genes also determine susceptibility to norovirus infection.
–