Waterborne norovirus outbreak in a municipal drinking-water supply in Sweden

Abstract

During Easter 2009, almost 200 people resident in a small Swedish village fell ill with gastrointestinal symptoms. We conducted a retrospective cohort study and a molecular investigation in order to identify the source of the outbreak. Residents living in households connected to the public water network were at an increased risk of developing disease (relative risk 4·80, 95% confidence interval 1·68-13·73) compared to those with no connection to the public network. Norovirus genotype GI.3 was identified in stool samples from six patients and in a sample from the public water network. Contamination of one of the wells supplying the public water network was thought to be the source of the outbreak. This is a description of a norovirus outbreak linked to a municipal drinking-water supply in Sweden. Information from epidemiological and molecular investigations is of utmost importance to guide outbreak control measures and to prevent future outbreaks.

UVC Inactivation of dsDNA and ssRNA Viruses in Water: UV Fluences and a qPCR-Based Approach to Evaluate Decay on Viral Infectivity

“…Water has been widely related to the transmission of viral infectious diseases (McKinney et al 2006;ter Waarbeek et al 2011;Riera-Montes et al 2011;Nenonen et al 2012). Consequently, the implementations of disinfection treatments such as chlorine and ultraviolet radiation are key processes for preventing the transmission of viral pathogens on a global scale.…”

Application of a Receptor-Binding Capture Quantitative Reverse Transcription-PCR Assay To Concentrate Human Norovirus from Sewage and To Study the Distribution and Stability of the Virus

“…GI strains were identified as the most frequent cause of waterborne outbreaks associated with HuNoV, whereas GII strains have been reported to be more common in HuNoV-related food-borne outbreaks and in health care settings (18,19,26). The reason for this association is not known, but it has been hypothesized that GI strains could be more stable in water than GII strains due to differences in their capsid proteins (18,19).…”

Role of noroviruses as aetiological agents of diarrhoea in developing countries

“…The RT-PCR method is gaining recognition as the preferred laboratory method. Advantages of the RT-PCR technique are the ability to quantify the viral load and to detect noroviruses in a broad range of specimens such as stool, vomitus, water, food and environmental samples (Koopmans et al, 2002;Mattison, 2011;Riera-Montes et al, 2011). Furthermore, genotyping of norovirus strains can be achieved by a dual-nomenclature system that involves sequencing parts of the genome, usually both the RNA polymerase (POL) region in ORF1 and VP1 sequences (Kroneman et al, 2013).…”