An Outbreak of Gastroenteritis Associated with Drinking Water Probably Caused by Norwalk or Norwalk-Like Virus

Abstract

Background: It is described an acute gastroenteritis outbreak of probable hydric transmission in Ontinyent (Valencia). It was declared on the 31st of January, 1992 and affected 3541 people according to the declaration done by the sanitary services who attended the patients. The clinical situation was characterized by the presente of profuse and watery diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and fever or febricula Methods: A preliminary study of the cases has been done, the information being treated with the classical method of descriptive epidemiology and a later study of the transversal observational type by means of a telephone inquiry. Results: The results show that this outbreak affected approximately to a 30% of the population, and show the relation between consumption of water from the municipal water system and the outbreak, as well as the existence of a control population not affected for receiving a different water supply. Conclusion: Once rejected the bacterial origen for the results of the coprocultivation done the analysis of the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of the outbreak, show a total agreement with the criteria described by Kaplan to characterize acute gastroenteritis outbreaks because of Norwalk-like virus.