Home Health Violent diarrhea dubbed ‘Ferrari of viruses’ is affecting Americans in record numbers…is YOUR state a hotspot?

Violent diarrhea dubbed ‘Ferrari of viruses’ is affecting Americans in record numbers…is YOUR state a hotspot?

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The map above shows reported norovirus outbreaks by state in the first week of December last year, the latest data available.

Norovirus, nicknamed the ‘Ferrari of viruses’ for the ferocity with which it spreads, is experiencing its biggest surge in more than a decade.

CDC data shows that the infection, which causes violent diarrhea, vomiting and stomach pain, caused nearly 100 outbreaks in the first week of December, the latest available, with more people sickened at this time of year than since 2010.

One in four swabs for the virus also tested positive, the data showed, nearly double the number from the same period last year.

The norovirus explosion is likely driven by a newly mutated virus variant.

But some also suggested that the increase It could be related to lockdowns, which left people without exposure to the common virus for several years, potentially weakening their immunity.

Other countries in the northern hemisphere are also reporting an increase, including the United Kingdom, where cases increased by 40 percent at the same time last year.

It comes amid warnings about a quadruple virus hit hitting the United States as millions of people return from the Christmas holidays, and amid concerns about a disease outbreak in China that has alarmed residents.

The map above shows reported norovirus outbreaks by state in the first week of December last year, the latest data available.

Overall, the data showed that the United States recorded 91 norovirus outbreaks in the first week of December, 40 percent above the record for the same week from 2010 to 2024.

Across the United States, Wisconsin reported the most norovirus outbreaks (or where two or more cases were reported in hospitals or schools), with 22 total.

Ohio (11), Virginia (6), California (5), Oregon (4) and Vermont (4) also recorded a higher number of outbreaks compared to other states.

About 21 million Americans are infected with the virus each year, and of those, about 2 million are sent to their doctor’s office or urgent care.

The disease is spread through contact with germs from an infected person’s vomit or feces, contaminated food, shared utensils, or surfaces they have touched.

While most people recover within a few days, the virus kills about 900 people each year, mostly adults age 65 and older.

Outbreaks are more common in the winter due to an increase in the number of people gathering in groups for Christmas festivities, traveling and staying warm indoors, where pathogens can easily spread.

Norovirus symptoms (nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea) appear quickly, within 12 to 48 hours after exposure.

Doctors say the illness can be avoided by washing your hands thoroughly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, washing produce before eating it, disinfecting countertops, avoiding people who have been infected, and cooking seafood to at least 145 degrees. .

The graph above shows the increase in positive norovirus tests from August 2024 to the first week of January 2025.

The graph above shows the increase in positive norovirus tests from August 2024 to the first week of January 2025.

Data on norovirus outbreaks comes from CalciNet.CDC’s national norovirus surveillance network that tracks the virus nationwide using data from 34 laboratories in 29 states. Labs that are not part of the network can also submit data.

Separate data from the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS), which receives data from 340 laboratories in 50 states, also revealed an increase in norovirus cases.

It showed that 28 percent of swabs, or 828 of nearly 3,000 tests performed, detected the virus during the first week of January, equivalent to one in four detecting the virus.

This represented a nine percent increase from the previous week, when 25.6 percent of swabs were positive, and 31 percent from two weeks ago, when 21.36 percent detected the virus. .

By region, the data showed that Region 2, which includes Missouri, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin, had the highest proportion of virus tests positive at 29.89 percent.

For comparison, Region 1, which is the southern US, had the lowest proportion of positive tests with 14.63 percent detecting the virus.

said Dr. Lisa Lindesmith, an epidemiologist at the University of North Carolina. Science: “The early data from the first part of the season certainly supports that we are going to have a pretty intense norovirus year.”

Surveillance showed that a new variant called GII.17, which has been present for years but at low levels, has recently increased.

Norovirus researcher Miranda de Graaf at Erasmus Medical Center in the Netherlands says the variant found there has acquired significant mutations.

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