Norovirus

[lovncruzn]

How many of you have actually had the norovirus on a cruise?

[LHP]

How many of you have actually had the norovirus on a cruise?

 

We have been on 3 "Norwalk" cruises but none of our family (personally) had the "experience". On one cruise however, our tablemate's teenage daughter came down with a bad case and the Mom did not have anything ~ meds wise. It was 2 nights before the end of the cruise. Fortunately, the Mom knew our cabin number and knew I was a floating pharmacy (all over the counter of course~ I would NEVER give anyone a prescription drug).

 

We have a special needs child and we have learned to be prepared for anything. Anyway, we had her well enough to handle the flight home a couple of days later.

[SmooCruise]

For those of you wondering what in the heck Norovirus is here is a little blurb about it:

 

It seems as though every week we hear of some ship with an outbreak of a gastrointestinal Illness, which we have come to know as the Norwalk virus. The Norwalk virus is a very common cause of nonbacterial gastroenteritis in the U.S. and is not new to cruise ships. It is found on cruise ships around the world. This past year there have been outbreaks in Europe, South America, Alaskan waters and the Caribbean. The Center for Disease Control works very closely with the cruise lines. The standard they must ascribe to is the highest in the world and continues to be the highest in the world. The CDC feels that the Norwalk virus is a predominantly person to person spread through hand-to-mouth activity which makes it more difficult to control. Because it is person to person contact and spread, the best preventative measure that passengers can take is frequent and thorough handwashing with warm water and soap, wiping your hands off, and keeping your hands out of your mouth.

The Norwalk virus is found in many other venues where people congregate for tow or more days. It is found in schools, hotels, camps, nursing homes and hospitals. Anywhere where people are together. Yes you could contact the virus while on a cruise but the chances of doing so are very small. So go ahead and take that cruise and follow the advice of the CDC. Before you travel check their web site at http://www.cdc.gov and click on Traveler's Health from the column on the left hand side.

[StephenNSamantha]

Both my wife and I got it on the Ecstasy in August. We started showing symptoms the last night of the cruise. Boy the drive home from Galveston to Waco sure was fun the next day. It took forever.

[VentureMan_2000]

Most of the CDC scores of Carnival ships are in the mid to high 90's (out of 100)... 86 is considered satisfactory.

[dan40]

It used to be plain old "stomach flu" but now it has aquired a techy name. I imagine everyone on this board has had it more than once. Maybe not on a ship, but we've all had it somewhere sometime.

 

Dan

[Tinkerbell]

My husband had it a few years ago when we went on a New England/Canada cruise on NCL. He said it was the sickest he has ever been. It took a lot out of him. He couldn't eat for a few days and was weak.

[lovncruzn]

It used to be plain old "stomach flu" but now it has aquired a techy name. I imagine everyone on this board has had it more than once. Maybe not on a ship, but we've all had it somewhere sometime.

 

Dan

I know it's just a stomach flu, but who wants that or any other illness while on vacation?:eek:

[MaryAnnKacz]

I'm pretty sure my boyfriend and I had it on Fantasy cruise in 2000. Chills, feverish, achy, nausea. It hit us both within an hour of each other. Heard of several other people talking about being sick the next day. It was either that or the shrimp cocktail. Couple we went with didn't get it and they didn't eat shrimp. Other people we talked to ate the shrimp at dinner and became ill. Only lasted about 10 hours, so maybe it was food related. Don't know, just don't want to get it again. Hasn't stopped me from cruising. Going on 7th cruise in Nov.

[lougee1043]

Most of the CDC scores of Carnival ships are in the mid to high 90's (out of 100)... 86 is considered satisfactory.

 

a high cdc score has absolutely nothing to do with a pax bringing the virus onboard and passing it around through a cough -sneeze - handshake or leaving it on an elevator button and yu then touching the button and then putting your fingers near your mouth

[Jim Gallup]

The CDC reports that about 27,000,000 Americans had Norwalk last year. About 2,000 or them were on a cruise ship when they got it. The other 26,998,000 were somewhere else.

[newmexicoNita]

It used to be plain old "stomach flu" but now it has aquired a techy name. I imagine everyone on this board has had it more than once. Maybe not on a ship, but we've all had it somewhere sometime.

 

Dan

thank you Dan, I couldn't have said it better and yes, I am sure we have all gotten it more than we want to remember. No, I haven't, nor have we been on a ship with an outbreak. I am crossing my fingers this continues to be our luck. NMNita