NSW Health is calling on people across the State to stay alert for symptoms of gastroenteritis following a significant rise in cases.
Director of NSW Health’s One Health branch, Keira Glasgow said rotavirus was one common cause of viral gastroenteritis and could be particularly severe in young children.
Ms Glasgow said the latest testing data showed rotavirus notifications were at some of their highest levels of the past decade.
“In the first two weeks of 2023, 197 cases of rotavirus were identified, compared with about 40 cases during the same period usually,” Ms Glasgow said.
“Last week, there were more than 2,250 presentations to NSW emergency departments with symptoms of gastroenteritis,” she said.
“Presentations were particularly high in children under five years old, and in children aged five to 16 years old,”
Ms Glasgow said reducing the spread of gastro before schools returned in the next few weeks was important.
She said symptoms of viral gastroenteritis included nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, fever, abdominal pain, headache and muscle aches.
“They can take up to three days to develop and usually last between one or two days, and sometimes longer,” the One Health branch Director said.
“The message to the community is clear – simple measures can help stop the spread of gastro,” she said.
“Maintaining good hand hygiene and keeping children at home when they are unwell will give us a good chance to slow the spread before February, when children will all be back together at school.”
Ms Glasgow said viruses were spread from the vomit or stool (faeces) of an infected person, which could occur when cleaning up body fluids, during person-to-person contact, sharing of contaminated objects, and occasionally inhaling airborne particles when people vomited.
Further information on preventing the spread of gastroenteritis can be accessed at a Fact Sheet at this PS News link.
