The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Wash your hands!
[ By Mark Reaman ]
A nasty virus that isn’t COVID appears to be impacting a portion of the county’s population and it also appears to be growing in numbers. According to information from Gunnison Valley Health, “the entire community is seeing an increase in GI (gastrointestinal) illness” of late. The major culprit appears to be the norovirus.
“These are endemic viruses that have always circulated at different times of the year, causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea,” explained GVH infection control director Jodie Leonard. “With the isolation and PPE use over the past two years because of COVID protocols, our immune systems haven’t been exposed to these illnesses much, so we are seeing lots of people getting exposed and struggling to fight it off. One of the culprits we are currently detecting is norovirus, but there are several others around. Things like E. coli and Campylobacter are bacteria and GI illness from bacteria typically will worsen over time and may require antibiotics to treat.”
As far as the spread, there were no such viruses noted in November and December of 2021 while January had one case, February had six positive viruses, four of which were norovirus and March thus far has shown seven viral positives, six of which were norovirus.
“We commonly see one or two cases per quarter of viral illness causing diarrhea,” explained Leonard. “Keep in mind, what we test and detect in the lab is only a small percentage of what’s actually happening in the community. Many people do not seek medical care when they have GI illnesses because they usually go away on their own.
“I have not seen any concentrated pockets,” Leonard continued. “But my concerns are mostly around staff and patients here in the hospital. I focus more on preventing spread within the health system, either staff to staff, staff to patient or patient to staff transmission.”
Leonard said viruses really only require supportive treatment and most GI viruses will go away on their own after 48 to 72 hours. She said the biggest risk is to individuals with weakened immune systems, the elderly and children, who may become dehydrated quickly. Fevers and stomach pain/cramping are typically managed with acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
“Viruses can spread like wildfire, so it is really important to wash hands with soap and water, especially after using the restroom,” Leonard emphasized. “Washing foods that are eaten raw, and washing hands before eating anything is also key. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer products are quite ineffective for most diseases that cause diarrhea. It is recommended that surfaces be washed with bleach or a bleach product.”
