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Probable Transmission of Norovirus on an Airplane
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To the Editor: Noroviruses are highly infectious and transmitted by multiple routes in closed settings,1 but in-flight transmission of norovirus has never been documented. After notification of acute gastrointestinal illness among crew members of an 8-hour international flight arriving in Philadelphia, Pa, from London on December 19, 2002, we investigated if passengers on the flight subsequently became ill and, if so, the means of transmission.
Methods
The airline gathered information from crew members on their illnesses and in-flight activities. Stool specimens were tested for norovirus by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. We mailed a questionnaire to all 191 passengers (86% of airplane capacity) to gather information about on-board exposures and occurrence of gastrointestinal illness, defined as vomiting, diarrhea with at least 3 episodes in 24 hours, or any diarrhea with either abdominal cramps or nausea between December 17 and 23, 2002. Probable norovirus illness was defined as gastroenteritis with onset 18 . . . [Full Text of this Article]
Marc-Alain Widdowson, VetMB
zux5@cdc.gov
Roger Glass, MD;
Steve Monroe, PhD;
R. Suzanne Beard, BS
Respiratory and Enteric Virus Branch
National Center for Infectious Diseases
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Atlanta, Ga
John W. Bateman, BA
New York Quarantine Station
National Center for Infectious Diseases
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Jamaica, NY
Perrianne Lurie, MD
Division of Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Pennsylvania Department of Health
Harrisburg
Caroline Johnson, MD
Division of Disease Control
Philadelphia Department of Public Health
Philadelphia, Pa
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BMJ 2005;330:989-990.
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