A large, prolonged outbreak of XXXX @entity70617 linked to an aged-care facility.

@entity1 @entity281 @entity70617 @entity344
This report investigates an outbreak of acute @entity344 , microbiologically and epidemiologically linked to an aged-care facility and seeks to determine if there was a point source of @entity281 . A register of cases that included onset date and time of illness and symptoms was maintained by nursing staff. Faecal specimens were tested for conventional gastrointestinal pathogens and for @entity1 calicivirus (HuCV). There were 81 cases reported. Specimens were received for testing from 25 cases. Twenty-three of the 25 (92%) specimens were positive for HuCV RNA by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The 2 negative samples contained RT-PCR inhibitors. Descriptive epidemiology suggested that staffing practices were important in prolonging the outbreak. No point source of @entity281 was identified. Instead environmental contamination, aerosol transmission and work practices that fail to take account of the natural history of @entity70617 probably contributed to the size (81 cases) and duration (3 weeks) of this outbreak among the residents, staff and visitors of an aged-care facility and their contacts. Institutional outbreaks caused by HuCV, formerly called Norwalk-like or small round structured viruses, are extremely difficult to control. Infected staff may contribute significantly to the amplification of outbreaks. Rapid confirmation of @entity70617 is now routinely possible using polymerase chain reaction diagnostics but progress in laboratory technology has not yet translated into faster or more effective interventions.
