Viral Gastroenteritis Makes its Way Through Maryvale

Over the past few weeks, a Maryvale pediatric office, MVP Kids Care on 51st Ave. and Campbell Rd., has been seeing at least two to three kids per day coming in with viral gastroenteritis (the general term for a stomach flu), which is a significant number according to one of their providers, Dr. Brent Bjornsen. Bjornsen described his experience with the virus and how it has impacted this pediatric office through his perspective.

“In the past month, the majority of sick visits in children, that I have seen, have been for viral gastroenteritis. On a given day, especially from mid to late March, it was probably two or three per day. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but it adds up, and other providers here have seen similar things as well,” Bjornsen said.

There isn’t a specific name for the stomach virus, explained Bjornsen, due to the fact that testing for which specific virus is present will not change treatment recommendations. Bjornsen did say that usually when there are stomach bugs going around in children, it is most likely the Norovirus. Since most children are vaccinated for the other prominent stomach bug, the Rotavirus, he made the conclusion that some of the cases may have been the Norovirus. According to the CDC website, these outbreaks are not uncommon.

“Each year, there are about 2,500 reported norovirus outbreaks in the United States. Norovirus outbreaks occur throughout the year but are most common from November to April,” the information page states.

This particular outbreak has been common in children, ranging from newborns to kids in grade school. The symptoms primarily include vomiting, diarrhea, and fever, according to Bjornsen. He also described children experiencing loss in appetite and risk of dehydration.

Bjornsen explained that this stomach bug usually starts with vomiting, and then the diarrhea starts. The child may also develop a fever within the first few days. The bug “goes from top to bottom” in making its way out of the body. The diarrhea usually is the “last thing to go,” which can last anywhere from 5-7 days, according to Bjornsen.

He also made it important to note that the diarrhea may last longer if there is dairy involved in the diet. He explained that the virus may be out of the system, but a temporary lactose intolerance may occur due to lactose metabolizing cells having been shed from the colon. Regardless, the symptoms and length of experiencing them differs from person to person.

The duration of experiencing symptoms may be uncertain, but what is more certain is where this outbreak is currently spreading. Bjornsen works at both the Maryvale and the Avondale MVP Kids Care locations, and he stated that while there are cases at both offices, it seemed that more patients were being affected at the Maryvale location.

Rebecca Contreras, a Maryvale resident and mother of a 9-month-old boy, explained that her son came down with the stomach bug mid March. After he had experienced a number of symptoms, Contreras knew something must have been going around.

“It was random. Everybody just started getting sick all the sudden. And not just my baby got sick, my sister-in-law’s baby got sick and she had the exact same thing,” Contreras said.

Bjornsen could not exactly pinpoint the cause for this “random” outbreak, but he was able to say that it was most likely due to the recent opening of schools. Aside from event-related causes, Bjornsen explained that this is usually contracted due to one not washing their hands frequently enough.

Once the virus is contracted, preventative measures like handwashing can only do so much. Bjornsen explained that the body does most of the work in pushing out the virus, but it is also very important to stay hydrated.

Local mother Rebecca Contreras found herself pushing her infant son to drink liquids constantly. Still, she faced problems with his diaper rash due to consistent diarrhea. She described the situation as “stressful,” and offered some advice to any moms that might find themselves in her shoes anytime soon.

“Be prepared. I had to go out in the middle of the night to get Tylenol for his fever. I really didn’t think it was going to get to that point, but it did. Even with the rash cream, I was glad that I already had plenty of that. It was one less thing to worry about,” said Contreras.

Hopefully, not too many other moms will find themselves in Contreras’ shoes. According to Bjornsen, the amount of viral gastroenteritis sick visits have been slowing down recently in comparison to the pattern of the past few weeks.

“I would say that it has calmed down over the past week. We’re still seeing a few, but I think it’s made its run through the community,” said Bjornsen.