Abstract
An outbreak of acute gastroenteritis occurred in a nursing home for elderly in Majorca between 4 and 23 February 2008. To know its aetiology and mechanism of transmission a retrospective cohort study was conducted with a fixed cohort including 146 people (96 residents and 50 employees). The data were collected from clinical histories and through a survey by questionnaire. In total 71 cases were identified (53 residents, 18 employees), corresponding to an overall attack rate (AR) of 48.6%.
Highlights
The progressive aging of the Spanish population increases the demand for residential services
A case of gastroenteritis was defined as any person working or residing in the nursing home during the month of February 2008 who had an episode of acute diarrhoea or vomiting, or two or more of the following signs: fever, abdominal pain, malaise and nausea
All residents ate the meals provided by the nursing home and drank the tap water of the nursing home until distribution and consumption of bottled water was ordered by the director on 11 February
Summary
The progressive aging of the Spanish population increases the demand for residential services. The resulting increase of the numbers of nursing homes and their residents has favoured the emergence of acute gastroenteritis outbreaks in these institutions over the past years [1]. Given the risk characteristics of this particular population, these outbreaks are characterised by high morbidity with high attack rates and long duration [2]. Enteropathogenic viruses, including caliciviruses, are the most common causal agents in these outbreaks [3,4,5]. Rotaviruses are responsible for severe diarrhoea, but mainly in children [6,7]. Outbreaks of acute gastroenteritis in nursing homes for elderly caused by rotavirus have been described in the literature [8,9,10]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
