Noravirus Outbreak in Georgia?

[TexasBob]

What soap you use doesn't really matter, just use it to throughly wash your hands.

Exactly, soap and water remove the virus and other germs from your skin so it doesn't make any difference what soap or detergent you use. I saw some research that showed that hand sanitizer was not very effective because the alcohol in the sanitizer did not kill the virus and did not remove it from the skin. The study showed that rinsing your hands in plain water was better for Norvovirus prevention than hand sanitizer.

[sethd513]

I think the common misconception with hand sanitizer is that you can't just squirt it on, slap your hands twice and your all set. For the sanitizer to be effective you need the friction created by rubbing you hands together. Just like proper soap and water hand washing technique the act should take atleast 20 seconds. "It has been credited in studies as an effective tool in outbreak control but can't be relied upon as the primary means of preventing the infection." This brings us back to proper trail etiquette. Staying away from water sources, digging a hole atleast 6 inches deep but the deeper the better. Trowels work much better then trekking poles. Then wash up. Sometimes you won't have clean water to wash with. Keeping filters and bottles clean and handling them with care goes a long way.


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[Pedaling Fool]

Glad I live in New England. Hopefully this thins the heard of nasty people that have no common decency for themselves or others before they get up here and ruin our trails for the season.


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Yeah, New England is really a great place... http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/03/...ster-egg-hunt/

An Easter egg hunt in Connecticut ended with parents scrambling to save their kids.

WCBS 880’s Kelly Waldron reports parents ignored the staggered start times at the PEZ Visitor Center for different age groups and rushed the three fields, snatching eggs right out of children’s baskets and even knocking them over.

[Traveler]

Yeah, New England is really a great place... http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/03/...ster-egg-hunt/

Lack of adult behavior abounds in all States. Now, back to topic?

[BonBon]

I thought the trail was overall very clean and well maintained when i hiked last year. The one thing though that was prevalent was the practice of pooping and just covering with leaves, not digging a hole. Toilet paper was not buried or packed out-frequently. At first I thought maybe it was mostly day hikers because I made the assumption that thru and section hikers would be taking care of that in the right way- but in the Priest shelter log, the number one "confession" was people saying they didn't bury their waste. I saw big bombs 2 feet from the trail and it was pretty gross. That seems like an easy way to spread disease, and one that is wholly preventable. With so many people on the trail, NOT burying your own waste is extremely irresponsible, rude, and lazy.

[Traveler]

I thought the trail was overall very clean and well maintained when i hiked last year. The one thing though that was prevalent was the practice of pooping and just covering with leaves, not digging a hole. Toilet paper was not buried or packed out-frequently. At first I thought maybe it was mostly day hikers because I made the assumption that thru and section hikers would be taking care of that in the right way- but in the Priest shelter log, the number one "confession" was people saying they didn't bury their waste. I saw big bombs 2 feet from the trail and it was pretty gross. That seems like an easy way to spread disease, and one that is wholly preventable. With so many people on the trail, NOT burying your own waste is extremely irresponsible, rude, and lazy.

No need to wonder why privies have been placed on the trail in higher numbers....

[LittleRock]

The hostel owners I talked to said norovirus happens every spring along the AT between the NOC and Damascus. The hostels get the worst of it because that's where the sick hikers go to recover. They get stuck deep cleaning their entire bunkhouse every time they get a case, and after that they get rewarded with a week of slow business while they wait for the rumors to pass through the grapevine.

[Hangfire]

Most of the shelters on approach to Damascus had huge bottles of hand sanitize on the picnic tables. This is where I stopped washing my hands and started using hand sanitizer, it's also where i got noro virus. It definitely sucks to deal with on the trail but something everyone should think out in advance, plan on keeping your distance from other hikers and showing proper courtesy. I remember camping in wood chucks yard a few days afterwards along with several other recovering hikers who were excited to go in and eat at the pizza buffet...I wanted to strangle them.

[George]

et tu ........

yes, me to - I do not deny it

[garminator]

Well, have there been any recent reports of NV on the GA section of the trail?

[JLorenzo77]

I work in infectious diseases and norovirus is common when people congregate in places. Soap and water and common sense go a long way. Hand sanitizers can be used but only in conjunction with hand washing. Don't share utensils, avoid handshakes and try to avoid hand to face contact. It's highly contagious but can be managed. Don't get me wrong, it sucks and makes you miserable and I can't imagine being anywhere but my own home when I experience it.

[turtle fast]

It is just comes down to good old fashioned hygiene. Wash your hands anytime after you toilet, as well as before you eat. I've seen way too many toilet paper mounds in close proximity to springs. Especially in areas above the springs! I remember in the Smokeys at Russel Field shelter the piles of poo on top of the soil just feet away from the spring and above it too. It was disgusting and a recipe for a disaster.

[Pedaling Fool]

Wow! Maybe we should start filtering our bottled water, at least the water from Andorra

https://www.yahoo.com/news/bottled-w...183316579.html

Excerpt:

Barcelona (AFP) - More than 4,000 people fell ill with norovirus in northeastern Spain after drinking bottled spring water contaminated with human faecal matter, local health officials said Monday.The health department of the regional government of Catalonia said 4,146 people were treated for symptoms including nausea, vomiting, and fever in Barcelona and Tarragona after drinking the contaminated water from office water coolers. Six needed hospital treatment.

"It is the first time in the world that norovirus has been found in bottled water," said Albert Bosch, a microbiology professor at the University of Barcelona, who was in charge of the analysis of the contaminated water.

[rocketsocks]

My first thought is it's probably more the delivery system (cooler) than the water itself, those things can get pretty nasty if not properly maintained.

[Traveler]

My first thought is it's probably more the delivery system (cooler) than the water itself, those things can get pretty nasty if not properly maintained.

That happens a lot in places where people congregate like tailgating and other activities that people move from cooler to cooler making the cooler water the vehicle.

[FatMan]

For the record, even though this thread continues on for many weeks, there has not been any norovirus outbreak in Georgia this year. Maybe the mods should change the title of this thread and take out the references to GA. It is always a good thing to discuss prevention, but fueling false rumors should be shut down.

[mandolindave]

Prevention from getting the virus is one thing, prevention from spreading it is another. Easier said than done. Scientist at a medical lab told me that time spent washing and rinsing is key. ( at least 60 seconds ) You probably need more water than most hikers carry. You need to " drop a deuce " away from water. I suspect that dirty underwear might be another transmitter.

[Greenlight]

Every time you "got the $h!ts" in your life and said "I got the stomach flu" or "I think I got food poisoning" ... you had Norovirus.


As a virus, the most effective ways of preventing the spread are good hygiene and social distancing.

Hygiene recommendations are to wash your hands with soap and water before and after eating, using the privy, touching other people, or touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with your hands. That said, don't NOT use hand sanitizer just because "it isn't as effective as soap and water." It still kills a lot of the buggers. Use hand san as a bridging measure until you can get to a place where you can use soap and water. Like if you do shake hands with someone you meet on the trail. And when you use hand san, don't rub it in. Use a quarter sized squirt, spread it thoroughly on your hands and let it air dry.

Wash your gear and clothes at every opportunity when you zero, and spray your pack and sleeping bag with Lysol or another disinfectant spray.

Not everyone who gets noro gets five days of projectile diarrhea. It might pass in a single day if your immune system is in top shape. Then again, it can put you down for half a week.

In a nutshell, keep your hands clean all the time and you probably won't get it.

I'd just avoid shelters and any high traffic spots....filter water...maybe add drop off bleach also? I'm no expert..just my .02....


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