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| Gastric virus causing widespread misery A gastric virus that has thrown hospitals in Scotland into chaos appears to be causing misery across the whole of Britain. Two Glasgow hospitals have been forced to close their doors to new admissions. But while the problem continues to be most severe north of the border, similar cases have been recorded throughout England. The Public Health Laboratory Service said the virus was common, but levels were higher than usual this year. Heath Secretary Alan Milburn said he was "keeping a close eye" on developments. He said: "It's right to be concerned about it. "It happens every year but the important thing is that we keep it under close monitoring, which is precisely what we are doing." Schools appear to be particularly vulnerable. Thousands of children in the north-west of England have fallen ill. Three hundred of the 900 pupils at All Hallows School in Penwortham are currently off sick. Among those who picked up the bug is 15-year-old Jenna Clorin-Wright from Middleton in Manchester. She said: "You feel terrible really for about three days. All my friends have come down with it, and there is a lot off school." The sickness is often known as "winter vomiting disease". It is caused by bugs known as small round structured viruses and is highly contagious. The illness usually starts with the sudden onset of severe and dramatic vomiting. The victim can be absolutely fine one minute and then vomiting the next. Some people develop diarrhoea. Symptoms usually last for 24-36 hours, and there are rarely any long-term effects Professor Hugh Pennington, an expert in disease from Aberdeen University, described the bug as the "Mike Tyson" of viruses. "It is a very clever virus. It is pretty good at spreading itself." Twelve hospitals across Scotland are now known to have been affected by the virus. The most serious outbreak so far has occurred at the Victoria Infirmary in Glasgow, which put a block on all new admissions on Monday after more than 250 patients and staff fell ill. A further 29 cases had been recorded by Tuesday evening. Health chiefs had hoped to resume operations and admit new patients on Tuesday, but that plan has now been delayed for at least another few days. The North Glasgow University Hospital Trust announced on Tuesday that no new patients would be admitted to the Drumchapel Hospital for at least 24 hours after 11 people there developed the sickness. The trust also says that four patients at the Western Infirmary are showing symptoms of the virus and have been isolated. And one ward at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley has also been affected by an outbreak of sickness and diarrhoea. Tests are being carried out to determine the cause of the outbreak. The bug has also struck a total of 56 people in the Forth Valley area, with two wards shut at Stirling Royal Infirmary and one closed at Falkirk Royal Infirmary. It has also hit Borders General Hospital in Melrose, where more than a dozen patients and staff have been affected. "The outbreak has been contained to two wards and the rest of the hospital is functioning fine," said a hospital spokesman. Nine patients and four members of staff are recovering after being affected at Ashludie Hospital in Monifieth, Tayside. Medical experts have stressed that the viral outbreak is not related to hygiene. It is very common and affects around three million people in the UK each year. However, the outbreak at the Victoria Infirmary is said to be unusually large. The bug has also struck down pupils at Forthill Primary School in Dundee, where 70 children were still off school on Tuesday. The Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport has revealed that an outbreak of the virus forced it to cancel routine surgery for a week a start of January. Reported outbreaks: Derry Belfast Newcastle Leeds Manchester Preston Birmingham Market Drayton Eastbourne Hertfordshire Dorset Brighton Southampton Plymouth 23rd January 2002 |
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