Norovirus spreads in NJ: Your guide to avoiding nasty sickness

⚫ NJ health expert chimes in

⚫ Can be mistaken for the stomach virus

⚫ How to protect the home

Norovirus and its varying strains are nothing new, but health experts are seeing increased activity compared to other years. The virus also has a seasonality, and we're in the midst of it.

"Patients usually report that the onset of symptoms are very acute. That means they're feeling fine at two o'clock in the afternoon. Three o'clock their stomach is gurgling, they're feeling a little nauseous and by four o'clock they're projectile vomiting. It comes on very quickly. Usually the incubation period, so the time from when someone is infected to the onset of symptoms, is 24 to 48 hours," Holy Name Medical Center's Chief of Department of Infectious Disease Dr. Suraj Saggar said to New Jersey 101.5.

The staple diarrhea and vomiting are a result of the virus causing acute gastroenteritis, which is intestine and stomach inflammation, according to Center for Disease Control and Prevention's website. Unless someone gets formally tested, it can be easily mistaken for the stomach bug.

One of many things making it difficult for health care professionals to track is that not everyone gets tested when they come down with symptoms. That's where wastewater surveillance comes in, which really "started in earnest" during the pandemic, according to Saggar.

"And why is that helpful? Because if we know from the state, from reporting, from wastewater surveillance that there is increased activity, then we can take preemptive measures both to prevent it in our communities as well as, quite frankly, preventing what we call nosocomial spread that is spread in healthcare settings, think hospitals, think rehab facilities, think nursing homes," Saggar said.

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Once someone comes down with the virus, they'll usually feel better after one to three days, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Separating fact and fiction

Saggar best describes Norovirus as a "hardy virus." Hand sanitizer and Clorox wipes won't mitigate the chances of coming down with symptoms, and he says it only takes a small amount of virus to cause illness. The staple symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and stomach pain. The gastrointestinal symptoms can last 36 hours or so, followed by days of aches and tiredness, according to Saggar. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention advises someone to stay home for 48 hours after initial signs of a full recovery.

Guide if virus is in the home

—Bleach is a must

—Don't prepare food if sick

—Sick person should use own bathroom

—Wash hands often with warm water

—Stay home when sick

—Spreading can happen as far as two weeks after feeling healthy

—Spreading: contact with an infected person, contaminated food/liquid, surfaces, touching face, virus in vomit and feces

How serious

—Can be treated at home (those without high-risk factors)

—Foods, liquids get rejected when introduced into the body

—Rapid spread in the home

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