Community Corner

That 'Stomach Bug' Is Likely Norovirus

After sweeping through Japan and Europe, the highly contagious gastrointestinal illness has hit the United States.

You got your flu shot, and that was a smart move. But there are other microbiological menaces out there this winter, and they can inflict just as much misery as the flu.

Perhaps chief among them is norovirus, which can afflict its victims with serious vomiting and diarrhea for several days.

Like influenza, and as its name suggests, norovirus is a virus. Unlike influenza, however, there's no vaccine to help stave it off. Keeping hydrated and riding it out are the only real options available.

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This winter's strain of norovirus already has raged across Japan and Europe. It is believed to be the cause of at least 60 percent of the 'stomach bug' cases reported in the United States so far in 2013.

Watch the video to learn more.

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