Incidence of Medically-Attended Norovirus-Associated Acute Gastroenteritis in Four Veteran's Affairs Medical Center Populations in the United States, 2011-2012

• Authors: Scott P. Grytdal, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; David Rimland, Emory University; S. Hannah Shirley, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Maria C. Rodriguez-Barradas, Baylor College of Medicine; Matthew Bidwell Goetz, University of California Los Angeles; Sheldon T. Brown, James J. Peters VA Medical Center; Cynthia Lucero-Obusan, VA Office of Public Health Washington; Mark Holodniy, VA Office of Public Health Washington; Christopher Graber, University of California Los Angeles; Umesh Parashar, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Jan Vinje, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Benjamin Lopman, Emory University
• Journal Title: PLoS ONE
• Volume: Volume 10, Number 5
• Publisher: Public Library of Science | 2015-05-21, Pages e0126733-e0126733
• Type of Work: Article | Final Publisher PDF
• Publisher DOI: http://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0126733
• Keywords: Science & Technology; Multidisciplinary Sciences; Science & Technology - Other Topics; INFECTIOUS INTESTINAL DISEASE; SURVEILLANCE; COMMUNITY; ENGLAND; DEATHS

Abstract

An estimated 179 million acute gastroenteritis (AGE) illnesses occur annually in the United States. The role of noroviruses in hospital-related AGE has not been well-documented in the U. S. We estimated the population incidence of community- acquired outpatient and inpatient norovirus AGE encounters, as well as hospital-acquired inpatient norovirus AGE among inpatients at four Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Centers (VAMCs). Fifty (4%) of 1,160 stool specimens collected ≤7 days from symptom onset tested positive for norovirus. During a one year period, the estimated incidence of outpatient, community- and hospital-acquired inpatient norovirus AGE was 188 cases, 11 cases, and 54 cases/ 100,000 patients, respectively. This study demonstrates the incidence of outpatient and community- and hospital-acquired inpatient norovirus AGE among the VA population seeking care at these four VAMCs.