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Subscribe to RSSHealth officials confirmed Friday that a fast-acting gut bug known as norovirus is responsible for an outbreak of illness that sickened more than 200 people gathered for a cheerleading championship in Washington state last weekend.
Results of state laboratory tests showed that that the nasty group of viruses caused the short-but-severe vomiting and diarrhea that affected some people who participated in and attended the state championship and Salute to Spirit cheerleading, dance and drill team event held in Everett, Wash. Norovirus is typically spread through person-to-person contact.
The outbreak was likely precipitated by people who were ill in public, said Suzanne Pate, spokeswoman for the Snohomish Health District.
"Somebody arrived at the event sick," said Pate, noting that janitorial crews were called to clean up vomit in a restroom and on an adjacent walkway. Those areas were likely exposure sites for the cheer and dance teams, she said.
Some 229 people were sickened and least 33 people sought medical attention for their illnesses, state health officials said late Friday. That number is expected to grow as the investigation continues.
More than 3,000 people attended the event Feb. 4, which included more than 1,000 competitors at the Comcast Arena, a popular venue for large gatherings.
A Comcast Arena spokeswoman said officials had sanitized the premises in accordance with federal health guidelines before a new event scheduled for Friday night. Tests of the arena's water supply showed no problems, Pate said.
"It's probably the best-scrubbed place in the county," she added.
State health officials are conducting an online survey of 2000 event participants and their families to identify a common source of illness. Participants have until Feb. 13 to submit the surveys, and results should be available soon after that.
About 20 million cases of gastrointestinal illness are caused by noroviruses each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Thorough hand-washing with hot water and soap and immediate sanitizing of contaminated surfaces and clothing is recommended to prevent the spread of the bug. If symptoms last longer than 48 hours, people should seek medical care.
Cheerleading camps or competitions have been the source of previous outbreaks, including a 2002 E. coli O157:H7 outbreak in Eastern Washington.
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Well, I certainly wouldn't want to be at the bottom of that pyramid.
LOL thanks for the early morning laugh:) I caught this nasty virus at an office xmas party 2 yrs ago....I failed to notice the guy eating from a chex mix bag and licking his fingers afterwards (someone told me later)...I grabbed only a handful, but it was enough....I will never ever eat chex mix again LOL
BOTTOMS up frrrrt
I'd rather be at the top than anywhere below! RAH! RAH! ROOLF!
West Boro Baptist Church must be having a field day with this stuff. Oh those damn heathens, this is God cursing them for passing that gay marriage law again!
I always warn young people about the way they share hearing devices. They'll be listening to music and using the earphones to listen at the same time. If one contracts something it's expected that others will.
I don't think the virus lives or is passed in ear wax.
I've helped a vomiting cheerleader more than once. But, it was usually caused by "alcovirus".
"Go Team Go"
"Chow to Blow"
"Go Team Go"
Paramed...you need to think a little more outside the box. Here is a little scenario for ya: Cheerleader #1 has the virus (though she may not be showing symptoms *quite yet*), the virus is all over her, especially on her fingers where she touches her mouth, nose, eyes....she transmits the virus onto surfaces (where the virus can live for a very, very long time unless cleaned up)..such a surface could be earbuds (since she touched her earbuds after, say, sneezing or coughing in her hands or even just rubbing her eye, the earbud is now technically called a "fomite"...in short, a virus carrying object)...Cheerleader #2 says "What are you listening to?" and #1 give her the earbud (i.e., fomite) and #2's fingers now have the virus..which she uses to rub her eye/nose, eat food with, etc. With norovirus touching the doorknobs after an infected person is a surefire way to get sick! Gotta love them fomites.
The transmission route you detailed could involve any object passed between 2 people, ie- a pencil. While I do not want to swap ear wax with anyone, I dont think sharing earbuds has an exceptional ability to pass a virus, any more than sharing a pencil.
"Bring It On" goes viral..........
if it turns into a plage with the war world 3 upon us then its right
that already happened in WWI (called Spanish flu at first later called swine flu because we gave it to the swine)
Never accompany your friend to the bathroom.
Imagine how far a cheerleader could slide across the floor, wearing saddle shoes, on the old vomit covered gym planks! Priceless.
Sack that quarterback hit that runningback
ooo ahhh ooo ahh
ewww crap on the floor and she's puking some more
ooo ahhh ooo ahh
"Nick nack barfing sack I used my buddies phone."
"We all just crapped our pants so let's go home!"
"Yay Team!"
I hope the janitors are ok!! Anybody think about them?? And most people are tacky, turning these kind of stories into a joke. Oh, "but your just having fun"! Right?!! Let's see how humorous you feel when your pucking your brains out!! Ha Ha!!!
I think you mean Puking, Rose...the other word you were looking for is "when you are phucking your brains out" not pucking.... Ha Ha to you
"Somebody came to the event sick"................WHY?!?! If you're THAT sick, you STAY home, you do NOT go out and infect others! I'll bet whoever came to the event sick feels pretty bad now...I would, especially since it COULD'VE been avoided.
Because in our current society, she would be crucified for "letting the team down" if she didn't show up. It's the same thing at work -- they say, "don't come in sick," but if you don't, you get in trouble for not coming in. It's the old rock and hard place cliche.
Well thats complete and utter BULL@!$%#. I would've stayed home anyway, and if the prissy bitches and power tripping coach had a problem with it, tough @!$%#.
Norovirus has a 24-48 hour incubation period and comes on really fast. Anyone who had it may have been fine until they were already at the competition. Plus, they don't really address this in the article, but norovirus is often passed in contaminated food. The article doesn't mention if they are all eating in a cafeteria or something, but when that many people get sick all at once, it is often the result of food. (I know it says it is often passed person-to-person, but I study this virus for a living and can tell you that contaminated food is a major source of outbreaks like this.)
I got it 2 years ago it is the worst bug ever. it comes out both ends and doesn't stop.
Man there is *nothing* hotter than 300 cheerleaders with "short and violent vomiting and diarrhea." Ohh yeah.
if you are going to catch a virus there isn't much you can do to stop it
Washington is hazardous to your health at any time.
Or maybe cheerleading is.
...i want my mommy......
This can happen at any event large or small. I always recommend that people who are feeling sick, do something about it first and make sure they're not spreading something that may harm others until they are better themselves. Some of these viruses are becoming particularly nasty and resistant due to overuse of vaccines and anti-bacterial-viral type soaps. Here is an article on What is a Norovirus and a Natural Treatment for Norovirus.
That's it? No one is touched by the fact that these girls were called hysterical and told their symptoms were psychological? I've been through that nonsense because no one had a name for Epstein Barre for years. It screwed my life up totally and I have had no recourse whatsoever. Yeah it's changed the way I am. People are judgemental and think they know it all even when faced with direct evidence to the contrary. For women and children and elders, it's usually a fight against the entrenched mindsets of men who hold them in low regard. Hope this humiliates the doctors enough for them to get a clue. Their wrong assessments caused ripples through the family and communities of the girls as well as harming the girls directly and might I say severely.
I understand and sympathize with what you are saying, but this article is about a different group of girls than the ones with the mysterious symptoms they can't diagnose.
"Rah rah rass! Explosions from my ass!"
"Rah rah ree! I'm puking by a tree!"
"When we feel better, we'll go shake out our sweaters!"
Umm that does not rhyme.
Someones gotta volunteer to give all these cheerleaders a thorough physical examination!
Would somebody please sing "Soft Kitty"?
Hmm so cheerleaders are the ones who spread the disease. This must be the "tube steak in mouth" version of the disease.