Sea Sickness: Despite cleaner cruises, diarrhea outbreaks persist
By Ben Harder
Cruise ships are cleaner than they used to be, but their standard sanitation practices don’t reliably wipe out the viruses behind a recent wave of diarrheal outbreaks, according to new reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. Halting viral epidemics on ships may require unusually rigorous measures, such as docking stricken vessels for extreme scrub downs.
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Noroviruses, or Norwalk-like viruses, spread easily through casual contact and can survive outside the body for days. In the confined spaces of ships, military camps, and overcrowded institutions, these hardy viruses often set off epidemics of diarrhea and violent vomiting. Noroviruses cause an estimated 23 million illnesses each year in the United States.