Introduction
Gastroenteritis refers to inflammation of the stomach and intestines, and is characterised as viral gastroenteritis when the inflammatory condition is caused by infection with a virus. Viral gastroenteritis is often called the ‘stomach flu’ because it is caused by a virus, even though the influenza virus is not one of them.
The general symptoms associated with viral gastroenteritis are vomiting and diarrhoea, and the illness is prevalent across all parts of the world. The different viral strains that cause gastroenteritis are often prevalent at different times of the year, depending on the season. For example, some viruses occur during the cooler months of the year, while other viruses are active throughout the year, and responsible for infections all the time.
Viral gastroenteritis occurs most frequently in group settings where people associate closely with one another, share toilet facilities, and share the same food and beverages regularly. Outbreaks of viral gastroenteritis often occur in schools, child care facilities, nursing homes, banquet halls, cruise ships, dormitories and campgrounds.
Anyone is at risk of contracting viral gastroenteritis, as it occurs in people of all ages and backgrounds, but some specific types of viruses often cause infection in different subsets of people. For example, some viruses cause infection most commonly in infants and young children, while older children and adults are more likely to be infected by other viruses.