Norovirus Ruled Out in Convention Outbreak

Posted on March 24, 2010 by PritzkerLaw

Bacterial toxins -- not Norovirus -- probably caused an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness in about 150 of 1,000 attendees at a YMCA Youth and Government meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina, in early February. Five were hospitalized.

That is the followup report from WRAL-TV in Raleigh, quoting health officials including state epidemiologist Dr. Megan Davies.

Said Davies: “The timing of the outbreak and the fact that most sick attendees had only diarrhea and not vomiting make it unlikely that norovirus was the main cause. Still, some students might have had norovirus when they arrived at the conference in Raleigh.”

WRAL reported that health investigators surveyed more than half of the conference attendees. Investigators found that students who ate at a February 12 banquet at the convention center were almost three times more likely to get sick as those who didn't attend the banquet. No other meals were associated with illness, officials said.

The short time between the dinner and the onset of illness makes it more likely that bacterial toxins, a common cause of food poisoning, were to blame, the station reported.
 
Bacterial toxins typically cause diarrhea, stomach cramps or vomiting within a few hours of eating contaminated food. The keys to preventing food-borne illness caused by these toxins are thoroughly washing raw ingredients to reduce bacteria on the food; keeping cooked foods separate from raw, uncooked foods; thoroughly cooking meat and poultry; and keeping cooked foods at safe temperatures after cooking.
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