A new strain of the highly contagious norovirus has reached the
U.S. from Australia. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) reports that the new norovirus—named GII.4
Sydney because it;s believed to have started in Sydney,
Australia‚is currently the leading cause of norovirus outbreaks
in the U.S. In the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
released Jan. 25, the noroviruses are: the leading cause of
epidemic gastroenteritis, including foodborne outbreaks, in the
U.S. Hospitalization and mortality associated with norovirus
infection occur most frequently among elderly persons, young
children, and immunocompromised patients. An article in Time,
Health and Family reported that - Norovirus is often confused
with what many call "stomach flu" because of its contemporaneous
circulation with influenza during winter months - Norovirus
causes 21 million cases of illness, often involving severe
vomiting and diarrhea, 70,000 hospitalizations each year in the
U.S., and 800 deaths. - Where influen