Norovirus or Norwalk Virus
Calicivirus, Norwalk, or Norovirus is an extremely common cause of foodborne
illness, though it is rarely diagnosed, because the laboratory test is
not widely available. Norovirus can cause a condition called viral gastroenteritis,
usually with more vomiting than diarrhea that resolves within two days.
The common cold is the only illness more common than viral gastroenteritis,
and it is estimated that Norovirus causes one-third of all gastroenteritis
cases. The Centers for Disease Control estimate that as many as 23 million
people in the U.S. have a viral gastroenteritis illness each year.
Unlike many foodborne pathogens that have animal reservoirs, it is believed
that Norwalk-like viruses spread primarily from one infected person to
another. Infected kitchen workers can contaminate a salad or sandwich
as they prepare it, if they have the virus on their hands. Infected fishermen
have contaminated oysters as they harvested them.
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