What is Norovirus?
Norovirus (also called the Norwalk virus) is a highly contagious virus that causes stomach and intestinal illness, especially vomiting and diarrhea.
What disease does Norovirus cause?
Gastroenteritis — an inflammation of the stomach and intestines that leads to diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain
Why is Norovirus important?
It is the most common cause of gastroenteritis worldwide.
How long after exposure do symptoms appear for norovirus?
12–48 hours after being exposed.
How long does Norovirus illness last?
Most people recover in 2–3 days.
What does “self-limiting disease” mean?
A disease that goes away on its own without needing special medical treatment. Meds only help lower the symptoms (think of covid)
how is norovirus transmitted
Through the fecal–oral route, meaning germs from stool enter the mouth (if someone uses the washroom and doesn’t wash their hands and you touch something they did and get in contact with your mouth)
Is Norovirus usually severe?
Severe illness is rare, but dehydration can happen, especially in children and older adults.
What are common ways Norovirus spreads?
Person-to-person contact
Contaminated food or water
Touching contaminated surfaces
Breathing in virus particles from vomit
Why is Norovirus extremely contagious?
Fewer than 20 virus particles can cause infection.
What does “aerosolized transmission” mean?
The virus becomes airborne in tiny droplets, especially during vomiting or toilet flushing, and can be breathed in. Even when it is cleaned up, particles are still there.
What does “virus shedding” mean?
The virus is still being released from the body (in stool or vomit), even after symptoms stop. This happens for weeks.
where is norovirus most common and least common
long term care homes (very high) and child care centres (very low)
when does norovirus most often occur? what season/month?
january and the winter months have the highest outbreaks
What type of virus is Norovirus?
A single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus.
How deadly is Norovirus globally?
About 200,000 deaths per year, mostly due to dehydration.
What does “single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus” mean?
A virus whose genetic material is RNA that can be directly used to make viral proteins.
What does “non-enveloped virus” mean?
A virus that does not have a fatty outer membrane.
Norovirus has no fat layer to destroy; it has a tough protein coat instead. Because fat (lipids) is easy to break apart with soap, and norovirus only has a hard protein shell, it is harder to kill the virus with regular cleaning agents.
What does “icosahedral” mean?
The virus has a geometric shape with 20 triangular faces, forming a strong shell. This shape helps protect the virus’s genetic material and makes it very stable.
what is meant by norovirus being genetically diverse
There are many different strains or norovirus which makes immunity short as there are many different strains, and your immune system only builds protection against the specific strain you had. When a new strain infects you, your immune system doesn’t recognize it well, so you can get sick again.
