An outbreak of viral gastro-enteritis at a charity function

One hundred and thirty-eight people of 431 who attended a charity function fell ill with gastro-enteritis mainly between 12 and 72 hours later. Three people were ill at the event, and a further three became ill within two hours of the event. A cohort study undertaken using a postal questionnaire showed that illness was statistically associated with having eaten cream, mints, or profiteroles. The duration of illness ranged from two to 120 hours, with a median of 48 hours. Twenty-three of the cases sent a stool sample to the laboratory. Six of these were taken to the laboratory within three days of the onset of illness and examined for bacteria before being sent for virological examination by electron microscopy (EM) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). All six were positive for small round structured virus (SRSV) on PCR, and negative on EM. The illness was likely to have been transmitted both by foodborne transmission and person to person spread at the event.