SHIJIAZHUANG -- A total of 135 students were hospitalized for stomachaches, diarrhea and fevers after drinking contaminated water at a middle school in north China's Hebei Province, the local government said. As of Tuesday, 50 students were still under medical observation, but all were in stable condition, the government of Longhua County said in a press release.

Seafood enthusiasts have been warned to stop gathering shellfish after "extremely high levels of norovirus" have been found in Christchurch. A health warning has been issued by the Canterbury District Health Board after contaminated shellfish were found around the mouths of the Avon and Heathcote rivers and at other locations around the Avon-Heathcote Estuary.

Hundreds of dancers, coaches and spectators came down with norovirus following last weekend's clogging competition at the Morehead Conference Center near Lexington, Kentucky. WKYT reports the best way to prevent spreading the virus is to wash hands and clean with diluted bleach.

A Weymouth seafront hotel has been hit by the highly contagious Norovirus. Guests at the 71-room Royal Hotel on The Esplanade have been struck down by the unpleasant stomach bug. The hotel, which is also open to non-guests for food and drinks, has remained open as usual as bosses try to contain the virus.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizers may not be the panacea for hand hygiene they were once supposed, as mounting research indicates they may not be effective substitutes for soap and water, and in some cases may actually increase the risk for outbreaks of highly contagious viruses in health care settings.

Murdick’s Famous Fudge of Charlevoix has issued a voluntary recall of some of its products because they may have been handled by ill store employees.

Abstract We evaluated data from gastroenteritis outbreaks in Oregon to assess sensitivity of stool testing for norovirus and determine number of specimens needed to confirm norovirus as the cause. Norovirus can be readily confirmed if 3–6 specimens are collected any time <7 days after onset of diarrhea and for almost that long after symptoms resolve.

On 13 April 2011 the medical service of a French military parachuting unit reported an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis involving 147 persons among the military personnel. Meals suspected to have caused the outbreak (pasta and some raw vegetables) were tested for norovirus by PCR.