Health Protection Agency HPA says the current surge in Acute gastroenteritis cases is being caused by the highly contagious 'Norovirus'.
HPA said that this virus spreads easily in closed spaces and in crowds of many people.
The Agency recommends washing hands with soap as one of the best ways to avoid getting infected with the 'Norovirus' as hand sanitizers do not work properly against the virus.
HPA also instructed the public to clean and disinfect areas someone has vomited or had diarrhea. HPA said that the best way to clean such an area is to first wipe with a tissue or a paper towel and then pour bleach on the area and leave it for 5 minutes.
It further instructed to wipe the bleach off the space and then use soap or liquid detergent to further clean the area as the virus causing the illness is highly persistent.
HPA also said that those who are infected must stay home except to seek medical care. It asked the public to seek medical care urgently if unable to keep fluids down or observe decreased urination, fatigue, or dizziness.
It also said that those who are infected should not cook or serve food until 24 hours after symptoms stop.
The Health Protection Agency said yesterday that the cases of the illness have been increasing in the last 2 weeks but saw an unusual surge on Thursday night with Emergency Rooms in the hospitals in Male' overwhelmed by the sudden increase.
While HPA said that the sudden surge was due to a virus and not due to a specific food, it is believed that the sudden surge was due to the huge crowds that flocked to see the Independence Day parade and military procession in Male last Thursday.
