Nasty tummy bug laying Northland children and adults low

Brody Kay and his mum Emily Connelly endured a "horrible" week at the hands of a nasty stomach bug. Photo / Supplied

Almost double the number of people have been admitted to a ward in Whangarei Hospital with gastro-related symptoms in the first four months of this year than last year.

Northland DHB figures show that 3.4 per cent, or 461 of the 13,748 people who have presented at Whangarei's ED so far this year, have had a gastro complaint.

That is slightly under the 485 people who presented with gastro during the same period last year.

However last year, 176 of the 485 who presented were admitted to a ward, while this year, 340 of the 461 were admitted.

May 1 was Whangarei boy Brody Kay's fifth birthday and should have been his first day at school. Instead he spent it at the hospital with a nasty tummy bug.

The usually active 5-year-old was struck down on the night of April 30 with vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach cramps.

His mum Emily Connelly said he had it for the rest of the week.

"It was horrid, absolutely horrid. I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy."

Their week included two GP visits, two hospital visits and a call to Healthline.

On her second visit to the hospital, Connelly said there were about five other people in the waiting room with vomit bags.

The hospital concentrated on keeping Brody's fluids up to avoid dehydration, but otherwise said it was a gastro bug that had to run its course.

A post on the Northern Advocate Facebook page received plenty of comments from people struck by the bug recently.

Manaia PHO clinical director Dr Aniva Lawrence said there are often peaks and troughs with the amount of viral gastroenteritis that is in the community.

"I would say that in the last couple of weeks there has been more cases but not significantly so compared to some of the other outbreaks of rotavirus we have had in previous years."

Lawrence said those who get the bug should stay isolated at home because gastroenteritis usually only lasts for about 48 hours but people need to be symptom free for two days before returning to work - especially those who work in food, health, and around the elderly.

"You need to be diligent with hand washing and keeping up with oral fluids. The worst complication of gastroenteritis is dehydration and if this is very severe it can cause organ failure. If the vomiting or diarrhoea is persisting for longer than five days the recommendation would be to review with your GP."

Northland DHB agreed the most important thing people can do when vomiting is to keep taking small sips of fluid such as water or fruit juice to avoid becoming dehydrated.

"A sweet drink can be useful for replacing lost sugar. You may find that ginger helps to relieve your nausea and vomiting. Try drinking fresh ginger stewed in a mug of hot water."

The DHB advises Northlanders to call their GPs if they have been vomiting uncontrollably for more than 24 hours, or if they have not been able to keep fluids down for 12 hours or more, because they have a high risk of becoming dehydrated or may have a more serious underlying condition.