The stomach bug has been making its way across central New York over the last several weeks.
Madison County Health officials reported over 54 suspected cases of Norovirus following a report from Colgate University this month. Dr. James Alexander, medical director for the Onondaga County Health Department, said the virus is like a stomach bug and is in season in central New York.
“It’s very predictable in that we know we are going to get it every year, there’s outbreaks occurring across the country,” Alexander said. “CDC’s position at this point is that we’re not seeing an unusual increase in incidents of the disease.”
He said the virus is not anything out of the ordinary.
“Norovirus accounts for the majority of gastroenteritis outbreaks, especially among children,” Alexander said. “It’s a very common virus it’s readily transmittable and it leads to a fairly predictable onset of disease and duration of disease and constellation of symptoms.”
Alexander said anecdotally there may be an uptick in cases but there is no real way to verify case numbers since infections are not required to be reported in New York State.
He said taking some protective measures like cleaning surfaces with a bleach solution, washing hands with soap and water and keeping rooms well ventilated can all help to limit the spread. He added that staying home when you don’t feel well is also a great way to protect others.
“If you’ve had diarrhea or nausea, vomiting, stay home for a couple days after those symptoms resolve and don’t go to work, and that can be hard but really that’s the best thing to do for the public interest,” Alexander said.
He said taking precautions will help to prevent a number of illnesses that are still in season.
“Wash your hands frequently, exercise good respiratory hygiene which is really important this time of year, for not only norovirus prevention but also to protect against coronavirus-19 and influenza and all the other bugs that are out there this time of year,” Alexander said.
